Fred Weasley's Newest Treasure
by Forestsong
Summary: After the Yule Ball, 6th year Fred Weasley meets someone who will change his life forever... or so he hopes  FredOC
1. Chapter 1

**Summery: After the Yule Ball, 6****th**** year Fred Weasley meets someone who will change his life forever... or so he hopes**

**Disclaimer: I only wish I owned "Harry Potter". Then I'd be writing an actual book and making money... but I guess fan fiction is a good way to be creative.**

**Author note: This is going to start off during "Goblet of Fire" (duh) and might keep going into "Order of the Phoenix". Aside from the Triwizard Tournament and the deaths, I'm going to venture off the books' path.**

**On with the story!**

Footsteps echoed lightly in the dark corridor, betraying the youths who ran there to anyone attentive enough to catch them. They snickered quietly as they ran, but kept their eyes open for the teachers who might have caught them out of bed so late, putting an end to their mischief. They turned down a side corridor, slowing their pace, to catch their breath and quiet their steps.

"This is going to be great," one boy said to the other.

"A prank not to be soon forgotten," his companion replied. Another turn brought them to a better-lit area, where they ran smack into a rushing girl.

"Oi, you might want to be watching where you're going," one of the boys told her.

She brought her gaze up from the floor to glare at them. "_You_ might want to be in bed. It's after-hours, you know. _Long_ after-hours."

"What are _you_ going to do, huh?"

"Report you to your Head of House and give you detention, that's what. I happen to be a Hufflepuff prefect."

"We're not scared."

"You should be, Fred and George Weasley. I'm sure Filtch would be more than happy to give you guys work to do."

Fred and George looked at each other and raised identical eyebrows. "You won't tell on us. Besides, why are _you_ out so late?"

"_I_ was talking to Professor McGonagall about some homework, not that it's your business."

"Oh geez, it's another Granger, George."

"Not another one."

The Hufflepuff sighed impatiently. "Why are you guys out of bed, then?"

"No reason."

"Yeah, we like night walks."

"You might want to get a move on, then. That is, unless, you _want_ to get caught," she said to them.

"You Hufflepuffs are all alike. No offense, but you hide behind your 'work ethics' like cowards and are loyal only to yourselves," one of the twins said quietly.

"For lions, you Gryffindors sure do lack courage and loyalty. Some 'Kings of the Jungle' you are."

The twins and the Hufflepuff stared at each other silently for a moment. Movement from a way off sounded in their hearing. Fred took a step forward and asked, "Want to help us prank Snape?"

"Fred!" George said, surprised.

She looked behind her and let out the breath she'd been holding in. Nodding once, she followed them as they dove behind a tapestry. After several minutes of following a passageway and descending two sets of stairs, they emerged from behind a suit of armor near the Great Hall.

"What are we doing?" she asked in a bare whisper.

"Messing with Snape," George replied.

"But how?"

"Stop squawking and you'll see."

They crossed the entrance hall and entered the Great Hall, easing open the large doors to avoid making them creak. The Hall was cold and bare, save for the House tables already set for breakfast and the teachers' table that was set as well. Fred and George led her between two tables and right up to the teachers', following it for several feet before stopping.

"Right," Fred said, "Snape sits in this spot everyday. We've cooked up a spell to mess with him and we put it into powder form. We'll coat the inside of his goblet with it, and when he goes to drink his pumpkin juice, the fun will start."

"Wait... You managed to get whatever your spell is into a powder form, and you think Snape is going to just drink it down? You must be mental. He'll either taste it or smell it. And the house elves might give everything a cleaning before breakfast. And what if there are nasty side effects? You obviously didn't think this through," the Hufflepuff said to them.

Twins grins met her eyes. "Ah but we have, oh noble one of wisdom. Apart from the enterprise we are currently building, we've been working on _this_." George took a small glass phial from his pants pocket. "I won't say what it does, you'll have to see that in the morning."

"But--"

Fred cut her off by taking the phial from George. He picked up Snape's goblet and gingerly tapped some powder inside, spinning it so the interior was coated. Once he was satisfied, he put the goblet down and corked the phial. "Snape will see, smell and taste nothing. It took a while, but we based this off of Veritaserum. Trust us, it'll work."

"But--"

"But nothing. We Weasleys know how to properly prank people, right Fred?"

"Right George. That's all set, so we should– oh bollocks."

She and George turned to see Mrs. Norris, Filch's cat, nose her way into the Hall. "Run."

The three of them slipped out the open door and dashed for the main stairs. They had to make a fast detour when they saw Filtch heading for the top stair so he could investigate what his cat found. Fred directed them up a different staircase that brought them out in the Charms corridor. "We should be safe here," he said tiredly.

"My common room is back the other way."

"Oh yeah." George swore. "We'll take you back so we know Filtch didn't catch you."

Down the hall they went, ducking behind statues when ghosts floated by. They had to go change direction abruptly when Peeves made an appearance and almost saw the trio. They made it to the last staircase the Hufflepuff had to go down and risk seeing Filtch. About to part, Mrs. Norris appeared out of nowhere.

"George, go! I'll get her back!" Fred said hurriedly and pulled the girl toward the stairs. She was caught off-balance and struggled to remain upright. She lost the battle as she started down the steps, crashing into Fred and causing them both to tumble the rest of the way down.

"Who's there? If you're a student out of bed, I'll catch ya!" a raspy voice called. Filtch had heard them fall, but didn't see them under the curve of the stairs. A distant cackle met his ears. "Peeves, you'd better not be throwing things again. By Merlin, I'll get Dumbledore to throw you out once and for all!" The angry man stomped away.

Once it was quiet again, Fred opened his eyes. "Are you ok?" he asked her in a whisper. She lifted her head off his chest where she'd landed.

"I'm alright. My arm hurts, and my ankle too, but I think I'll be ok. You?"

"Just my back where I landed." He looked down at her and in the scant light noticed her looking at him. "What?"

"Just looking."

"Like what you see, do you?"

"Not really." She turned herself so she sat on the floor next to Fred. "It really is getting late. It'll be hard enough for both of us to get into our common rooms now. You sure you're ok?"

By that point Fred was on his feet. He offered her his hand and pulled her up. "I'm sure. What about you?"

"Peachy. Well, have a good night." She turned to leave him there.

"Wait, what is your name? You never said."

She looked thoughtful as she half-turned. "You're right; I never did." She paused.

"Well?"

She started walking and called back to him, "It's Parker. Parker Levesque."

**There's the end of chapter 1. I wanted it a little longer, this seemed a good way to end it. Update will be soon! Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Still don't own it...**

"Fred, stop twitching! You won't find her... it was sort of dark last night, in case you forgot. You didn't get a very good look at her," George told his twin the next morning.

"Dark? Oh yeah... I _did_ forget about that." Fred stopped scanning the room and focused on his food.

"You guys promised Snape-ridden amusement for breakfast. I'm waiting," Lee Jordan, their best friend, said from George's right. "And I don't want to wait anymore."

"Snape hasn't flown up from his cave yet," Fred replied. "You're going to have to wait a little longer." Lee scowled and dug into his porridge.

Several minutes passed as the late risers sat down to eat and everyone else finished up. George was about to admit defeat when Snape finally strolled in and sat down at the teachers' table. The twins and Lee watched without being obvious, a skill that came in quite handy, while two Hufflepuffs did the same from across the room. Snape poured himself some pumpkin juice and took a sip, swirling the contents around his goblet. He downed the rest and poured a second cupful.

"The fun begins when we get him to talk," Fred muttered to Lee. "Watch." He nudged his twin.

George waited several seconds for a lull in the conversation, then suddenly yelled out, "SHAMPOO!"

Snape put his goblet down and said, "Señor Weasley, usted no es..." He paused and cleared his throat, and tried again. "Señor Weasley..."

Fred and George could barely contain their laughter. Lee grinned ear to ear as the rest of the students began laughing. They noticed that even the other teachers were barely suppressing smiles.

"¡Silencio! ¡Silencio! ¡Esto no es chistoso! ¡Quiero que el que hiciera esto arriba aquí en este momento!" Snape yelled. He received more laughter rather than what he wanted. "Cuándo yo agarro el que hizo esto, así que ayuda su alma mortal..." Snape swept out of the room angrily.

"Everyone, silence please," Professor Dumbledore said as he stood. "While I will admit that was the most pleasing breakfast amusement I've seen in some time, it is not appropriate for students to do such things to teachers. I expect a full apology and an antidote to be delivered to Professor McGonagall by dinnertime, no questions asked. If either fail to appear, there will be dire consequences." He shot a knowing glance in the direction of the twins and left the room.

Fred, George and Lee got up with several other students and made their way to the entrance hall. "That was wicked," Lee told them. "What'd you do?"

"Trade secret, mate. We're not about to divulge the secret to that prank just yet," George answered. "We just had to do something to celebrate the last day of the Christmas holiday. The Yule Ball was just jolly, but now we have to start class again, and that makes us sad, doesn't it, Fred?"

"Sure does, George." Fred turned to locate the sudden sound of his name being called.

A girl he didn't recognize was walking over to them with a guy in tow. "Fred, George, hi!"

"Umm... Who are you?" Fred asked.

"You don't remember me? I'm crushed. Here I was, about to tell you I lied and I really _was_ admiring the merchandise," she said airily. "I suppose I should expect it, what with you being so..." She trailed off.

"Lied? Merchandise? Wait... _Parker_?!" Fred exclaimed.

"Who?" George asked.

"The girl from last night."

"My name is Parker Levesque," she said to George and Lee. "This is my best friend, Drake Corin. Drake, Fred and George... and Lee Jordan too."

"Nice to meet you," Drake said as he shook hands with the twins.

"So this is what you look like in the light?" George asked.

Parker turned a light red as the boys looked her over. She wasn't very tall at just over five feet, two inches in height, a full four inches shorter than the twins. Her cheerful face was framed by waist-length strawberry-blonde hair that held more red than blonde. Thin eyebrows arched over her sea green eyes, the color of which she was often told was startling.

"This is what I look like. What, you were expecting Peeves?"

"Not Peeves. But not you, either. I mean..."

"Fred, George, whichever you are, open mouth, insert foot." The twins looked at her, confused.

Lee laughed and said, "It means you just need to shut up before you say something stupid. It's a Muggle saying."

"Oh... Uh..."

"It's ok, twin. I need to get going. As much fun as standing in the hall is, I have things to do," Parker said suddenly. "I'll talk to you guys later." She waved and walked away.

"Strange one she is," George told them. "Mental, almost."

"That's Parker for you," Drake told them. They started walking outside. The boys followed a worn path in the snow. "She goes from one thing to another all the time. You'd think she'd've slowed down by now."

"Slowed down?" Fred asked. Lee left them to walk down to Hagrid's to talk to the teacher.

"Oh yeah. She's been like this for longer than I can remember."

"How long've you know Parker?" George asked.

"Since we were in nappies. Two, maybe three years old."

"Really?" Fred asked. "That's funny, George and I have known each other since _we_ were in nappies too. What a coincidence. But then again, we were baked in the oven together, so we've known each other longer than _that_."

"Wait..." George stopped building a snowman with a spell. "I hate to be rude, but _why_ are we talking?"

Drake shrugged. "I don't really know. You like my boyish good looks?"

"Yeah, ok," George snorted. "And I'm the ruddy Queen."

Several hours later Drake climbed through the statue that guarded the Hufflepuff dormitories and common room. He found Parker sitting at a table, books and parchment surrounding her. "What's up, Park?"

"Just finishing McGonagall's essay."

"That's not due until the end of the week."

"I want it done and out of the way." Parker picked her head up and said to her friend, "Why do you think I have so much free time? I do my homework asap so I can do what I want."

"So you've said before," Drake said tiredly.

"And yet you never listen. So what's up with you?" She put her quill down and focused on him.

"Just got away from Fred and George. You know, they're planning on opening a joke shop?"

"Everyone knows that. What'd you guys talk about? Boobies?"

Drake turned red. "No. But we did talk about you."

"You talked about _my_ boobs? That's weird, but ok."

"We didn't... that's just... I hate you."

Parker grinned widely. "No you don't. You love my wit and charm, and you love my soft, mature girlishness."

"_Mature_? _You_? I'd like to see the day."

"I said my _girliness_ was mature, not my personality."

"Oh, pardon me. Anyway, they wanted to know about you. I guess they liked you helping them last night. Well, Fred did most of the asking," Drake said, doodling on a bit of parchment.

"Fred? Ok, spill."

"I'm not your spy. Go ask him yourself."

"Prat."

"Git."

"Fine. I'll ask him... eventually," Parker said, picking up her quill again.

"You won't. It'll take me, Laddie and Brooke to get you near him of your own free will," Drake pointed out.

"I have several classes with _both_ twins. It's rather hard to avoid them," Parker replied. "So Laddie and Brooke don't have anything to worry about."

"Stubborn, that's what you are."

"I won't deny it."

"If it wasn't for the fact that we've known each other since before teeth, I'd claim to have never seen you before."

"Drake, you wouldn't," Parker protested.

He looked thoughtful, then said, "I wouldn't. But you need some lovin', and Merlin knows _I'm_ not going to give it. You need pushing and prodding to even talk to guys."

"I'm shy."

"You weren't shy at the Yule Ball."

"I'll talk to him, ok? I have Potions with him tomorrow, I'll get him as my partner. Happy?"

"Not yet." Drake stood and kissed her on the forehead. "You work too hard. Learn to loosen up a little."

Parker dropped her bag on the floor with a solid thud. "You mind if I'm your partner today? Laddie's being a prat," she said with a pink tinge to her face.

The Weasley twin she'd approached lifted his head from his chin. "I guess, but--"

"Thanks." She looked up at her friend and scowled as the other girl smiled and flashed a thumbs-up. "So did Snape ever get fixed? I missed breakfast this morning."

"For the most part. He says something in spanish every few words, but that'll wear off in a few days," he replied.

"So you guys gave him the antidote, counterspell, whatever it was?"

"Nah, that _he_ figured out. Fred wrote a sappy apology that we're sure will earn us detention, but it was worth it."

"Well, I can't wait for class to start– Wait, you're not Fred?"

"I'm George. Fred will be here any time."

"Well, _I'm_ embarrassed," Parker confessed.

"I assume you have to talk to him, then..."

"In a way. I just have a few questions, nothing bad though."

She jumped when she heard a voice behind her say, "Questions about what? You trying to find out if what they say about large--"

"FRED!"

Fred dragged George, chair and all, over to another table. He grabbed himself a chair and dropped his bag next to Parker's. "So what questions do you have for me?"

"Well," Parker began, "you could tell me why you threw George over to the Slytherins."

"I did? Oops. He'll get over it. So what else?"

"Well--" Parker went silent as Snape walked in.

"You will all be silent. There is no dispense para lo que sucedió yesterday. Your assignment," Snape waved his wand towards the board, "is there. Comienzo."

Parker, Fred and the other few students in the class pulled out their materials and worked on their potions. The room was silent, as always, except for the usual potion-making sounds. Between adding ingredients and stirring, the pair slipped a piece of parchment along the table.

_So what are your questions?_ Fred wrote first.

_Drake came in last night and told me he'd spent the day with you and your brother. He didn't say much, just that you'd been asking about me. I'm curious about what you wanted to know,_ she wrote back.

_Just general stuff: birthday, siblings, favorite things... I asked what year you were in, and I didn't believe Drake when he said sixth. You said Drake "came in"? What's that about?_

_Oh, he's a Hufflepuff, too, and the boy prefect for our year. To answer your other... inquiries, my birthday is January 21. I have a sister and a brother, older and younger, respectively. I love the colors blue and green, my favorite food is fish 'n chips, I love citrus flavored tea, apples are my favorite fruit, carrots my favorite vegetables. I love Muggle science fiction stories and general fiction, too. I also collect coins, and the three bookcases I have in my bedroom are full. Anything else?_

_Name one of your biggest fears._

Snape walked by them at that moment, and the parchment caught his eye. Fred looked up from his potion and asked, "Am I doing something wrong, Professor?"

"Watch yourself." Snape walked away.

_Why one of my fears?_

No response.

_Fine. I am TERRIFIED of bees._

_Bees? That's all? Not death, or You-Know-Who, or loneliness, but BEES?_

_I have my reasons._

_I'll have to hear them later._

_Maybe, maybe not._

Reality was brought back to them by Snape demanding samples of their potions to be brought to his desk. The class remained silent until the bell rang, and they filed out and filled the dungeons with talk. Fred caught Parker and offered to walk with her to Transfiguration, a class which they happened to share. George looked at them strangely, and fell back to talk to another of his friends.

Once in the classroom, Fred took the seat next to her, while a curly-haired girl plopped herself on Fred's other side. She thrust her hand out and said cheerfully, "I'm Atlade Idgara, but you can call me Laddie. I've known Parker since our first day at Hogwarts."

"I've seen you around, Laddie," Fred said as he shook her hand. "I've also heard things about you."

"None of which are true, be assured. So you and Park are suddenly friends? That's a little weird, you know. She generally doesn't just hanging out with people... Normally we have to force her to talk to people other than us. And by 'us' I mean Drake and myself."

"Laddie, please shut up. For the sake of my sanity, _please shut your mouth_," Parker moaned.

"Oh let her talk," Fred laughed. "I'm sure she'll tell me more than you ever will."

"Why you--" Parker shoved Fred away from her, causing him fall out of his chair.

"Miss Levesque, that was quite uncalled for," Professor McGonagall said from behind her desk. "Ten points from Hufflepuff and an apology to Mister Weasley are in order, I think. You may apologize now."

"I'm so _very_ sorry, Mister Fred Weasley," Parker said in an exaggerated voice. "It was _very_ inappropriate for me to shove you out of your chair right after you had insulted me. Given my punishment, I will take care to never do so again. Am I forgiven? Oh please say so. I don't know how I'll--"

"That is _enough_, Miss Levesque. Your apology has been made, so we shall proceed to our lesson. Now..." McGonagall started a lecture about the subject of human transfiguration. Parker noticed that Fred was still having a hard time trying not to laugh out loud at her "apology". The rest of the class went quickly, but Fred was kept laughing by Parker, who was making faces and whispering things under her breath.

"Miss Levesque, you have never been unruly in my class before. Now, I don't know what was with you today, but I do not want a repeat of it. I hope you are wise enough to take heed at my warning," Professor McGonagall told the girl at the end of class. "I would not like to send your parents an owl saying that you have turned delinquent on us."

"Have no fear, Professor," Fred said with a wink. "I'll be keeping an eye to her suddenly rebellious behavior."

"_That_, Mister Weasley, is what I am most afraid of."

**There's chapter deux. Hope you liked it, I had fun with this chapter.**

**NOTE: Here is the translation of what Snape said during breakfast. Mind you, it may not be exact, as I got it from a website**

**BREAKFAST**

"**Mr. Weasley, you are not..."**

"**Mr. Weasley..."**

"**This is not funny! I want the one who did this up here right now!"**

"**Silence! Silence! When I catch the one who did this, so help their mortal soul..."**

**DURING CLASS**

"**...excuse for what happened..."**

"**Start."**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: Still no . . . **

**Author's note: A friend of mine who reads this noticed that I have a character named "Parker" and a character named "Drake," therefore naming the character "Drake Parker" from "Drake &Josh." This is purely by coincidence, Parker's name came from a quiz I took, and I like the name Drake. Also, I've decided to mark time passage in chapters with bold lettering.**

**Oh, warning on possible mild language and on violent insinuations.**

**Onward!**

Parker woke up with a groan. It was just past dawn, and far too early for her to get put of bed and move around. Hell, she doubted that no one but the teachers were creating motion at that hour. But she had trouble going back to sleep once she was up, so she threw on her dressing gown and slippers and headed to the bathroom. A quick shower woke her the rest of the way up, she put on her robes and left the common room to go for a walk.

An hour later, Parker walked into the Great Hall to find the House tables were starting to fill. She barely got the chance to sit before several bodies collided with her own and forced her onto her bench. She shoved them away and found Drake, Laddie, her raven-haired Ravenclaw friend Brooke Sherman and Brooke's twin brother, Jude.

"What was _that_ for?!" Parker demanded.

"The other girls said you weren't in your bed when they were getting dressed. Excuse us for being concerned," Jude said with his hands on his hips.

"You guys have known me long enough to know I take walks in the morning during winter," Parker spat.

"Touchy," Brooke said gently and motioned for the others to go sit down. Jude, being in the same House as Parker, sat next to her. The others went to eat their breakfasts before class started and they went hungry until lunch. "It was more than that. Spill."

"There's nothing else to say, Brooke. I went for a morning walk. I _like_ the cold. Why is that a problem all of a sudden?"

"You're just cranky that you had to come in. I swear, you have ice for blood."

Parker frowned and stood without touching her breakfast. "I'm heading to Charms early, so tell everyone else where I am." She walked away.

"Parker! Parker!" She turned to see Fred and Jude coming after her as she turned down the Charms corridor. "What's wrong?"

"Your sister, Jude. _That's_ what's wrong. She has a gift for hitting just the wrong spots and throwing my sensitivities in my face," Parker said, turning red.

"We all know she's always been like that. You have to let her know when she does it so she'll do it less," Jude responded. "Look, I don't have Charms with you guys, so Fred, please just watch her. Make sure she doesn't wallow." Jude gave Parker a big hug and walked to his own class.

Fred and Parker walked in silence for a few minutes before he asked, "Do you want to talk about it?"

"_No_," was the firm response he received.

Parker didn't want to tell Fred about how she was always teased about being cold. How when people called her cold, it wasn't just about temperature, it was about her intimacy with men. How the only guy she could have ever called her boyfriend had only wanted to bed her, and when she'd said "no," he'd tried to hit her. How Drake had been there to scare off her attacker . . . She also didn't want Fred to know that over the past month she'd grown fond of him, a fondness that had evolved into a serious crush. So Parker kept her head down, hair in front of her face so he couldn't see the fire in her cheeks.

"Parker, c'mere." Fred stopped her from walking away by putting his hand on her shoulder. "Something is wrong that you're not telling me."

"It's nothing, Fred." She tried to brush his hand off of her.

"That's not true. Look at me." He put his hand under her chin and gently lifted her face so he could see her. Pain was in her eyes. "I won't force you to tell me anything. I just hope in time you'll trust me."

She tore her face away. "I _do_ trust you; that's the problem, Fred. Please, just drop it."

Fred nodded. "Well, _anyway_, George and I were thinking--"

"Oh no." Parker immediately grinned.

"– that maybe you wanted to help us with some more 'experiments'."

"'Experiments'? Fred, your last one nearly got us all in trouble. I hardly think Moody is likely to forget his leg and eye going missing for a week."

"Psssh, he's already forgotten," Fred said with a wave of his hand. "He could have always made himself new ones anyway."

"You, Fred Weasley, are a horrible person."

"Do I make him any more horrible?" George asked as he suddenly appeared behind his twin.

"AHH! GEORGE!"

"Good one, mate. 'Least she isn't moping anymore. To Charms! May I escort you, fair one?" Fred asked, offering Parker his arm.

She laughed heartily and said, "Why thank you, sir." She linked her arm through his, then through George's with her other arm. Together, the three of them skipped up the corridor to class.

**Later that night**

Fred sat in his favorite chair in his common room, staring into the fire. His day has been like always, with laughing and joking around and general mayhem. But that morning with Parker had somewhat unnerved him. He'd never seen pain in someone's eyes like what he'd seen in hers. It disgusted him and angered him all at once; someone, at some point in her life, had hurt Parker, and had hurt her badly.

The more he thought about it, the more he knew that pressing her for what had happened would only drive her away. Fred suddenly realized that he cared a great deal about Parker's feelings, her happiness most of all. He'd noticed himself becoming more of what his mother called "smitten" with Parker. He wanted to be with her more and longed to hold her.

_Things just got a bit more complicated_, he thought, slightly amused. _It's going to get even more so if she feels the same way._

**A few days later**

Brooke and Atlade dragged Parker into one of the castle's many empty classrooms for a "girl's day" one afternoon. They took food and drink with them, and conjured heated squashy chairs to sit in since the room itself was unheated. After they got comfortable, Brooke shot a look at Parker and said, "I hate you for loving the cold."

"I hate you for loving the extreme heat," Parker responded. "So aside from consuming food and gossiping, what's the point to being in here?"

"Just that," Laddie answered.

"If that's true, I'm Snape." They all laughed and began nibbling on food. Talk and gossip soon followed, taking a turn Parker felt was coming.

"So Parker, spill."

"Spill what, Brooke?"

"C'mon, Park. Tell us what's been going on with Fred," Laddie said to her friend.

"There's _nothing_ going on between Fred and I, guys. We're just friends."

"We've seen the way you guys look at each other. You can't say there's nothing going on."

"There _isn't_. We're _friends_. That's it," Parker insisted.

Brooke and Laddie folded their arms across their chests in unison. "All these years you've never looked at Fred or George, and suddenly we can't separate you from them. There has to be more to it."

"Plus," Brooke added, "you both just have... a _look_ to you when you look at each other."

"Please, please stop making more of this than there is. Fred and I are friends, no more, no less." Parker saw the looks she was receiving from her best friends and sighed in defeat.

"You_ do_ like him!" Laddie exclaimed, joyous.

"Yes, I do. I just don't think he likes me the same way. I mean, he treats me 'like one of the guys', not like someone he's interested in... And I am _not_ about to just walk up to him and ask him if he likes me back."

"That'd be stupid," Brooke said.

"I think he has a thing for Angelina anyway," was Laddie's response. "They went to the Yule Ball together."

Parkers' face told them that she was a little upset by the news, but their friend covered it up by smiling and saying, "'All's fair in love and war,' right?"

**The next day**

Fred found Parker reading in the library the next day. He judged that her relaxed posture, comfortable-looking clothes and devotion to her book meant that she was reading for pleasure, not for homework. He approached cautiously; having a bookworm for an older brother had taught him to regard certain people with care when they were reading (not that he minded bothering Percy... he was an easy target).

Parker heard, rather than saw, Fred slowly making his way toward her. She put her book down. "Hi, Fred," she whispered.

"Hey. What're you reading?"

"Oh, just a Muggle fantasy book about magic and intrigue."

"Is it accurate?"

"Not a bit. So what's up?" Her head tilted curiously to the side.

"Can I talk to you? Where there _isn't_ a librarian breathing down our necks?"

Parker saw Madame Pince hiding behind a row of books not far away. Her heart felt a bit heavy, but she said, "Of course. Lead and I will follow."

Fred and Parker left the library and agreed on a walk outside. Like Fred had with Drake and his twin, they trudged through snow piles. The sun was bright, the air crisp, which he noticed brought roses to Parker's cheeks. They walked in silence.

Parker noted the silence and met it with her own. Part of her was panicking; she was dead sure Fred was going to shoot her down for Angelina, and she wasn't sure she could handle rejection again. Parker had met Angelina before, and thought she was quite nice, despite Captaining for a team that had the twins on it. She felt her mind racing for a way to not let her feelings show, and knew she was failing. It was getting a bit uncomfortable, so she picked up a wad of snow and faked like she was going to throw it at Fred.

"Hey, that's not nice," he said with a smile.

"No one ever said I was nice," Parker retorted. Her attention was back on her hand, where the snow was re-shaping itself.

"What're you doing?"

"Making something."

"How?"

"I don't know, really. I've been able to mess with snow and ice since I was small. Mum thought that either she, or I, or even both of us, was mad. I love the cold, so winter's my favorite season. Mum was always after me to put on a coat, but I found ways around her to run around outside without it." At that, Fred noticed she wasn't wearing a coat. He took off his own and Parker shook her head. "I'm plenty warm, thank you."

Fred touched her arm and found it to be warm, despite that they'd been outside for several minutes. "Did you use a warming spell of some sort? I don't think they last long on skin..."

"No, no spell. When I got accepted to Hogwarts, Mum found a book in Flourish and Blott's about weird conditions or something like that. Anyway, she wrote me sometime in the first year that she found something that sounded like me in winter time."

"What'd she say?" Fred asked.

"Oh, just that she thinks I have a bit o' ice elemental in me. Not much, mind you, but just enough that cold doesn't bother me, but heat does. I think she's nuts, personally, and the Healers at St. Mungo's are undecided since I've shown no _real_ elemental powers. I guess that's what happens when you're ignorant of magical diseases and 'issues'; your Mum thinks you have each and every one of them, including the rare and unlikely."

"Ignorant of magical diseases?" Fred asked, confused.

Parker was confused at his confusion, then realized with a start why he was. "Fred, I'm Muggle-born."

"You are? You never said..."

"I didn't? Oh. It's... it's not an issue with you, is it?" Parker asked worriedly.

"That you're Muggle-born? Nah, I don't care. None in the family do. I mean, Dad absolutely loves Muggles, Mum and everyone else don't really care. Look at my brother Ron; one of his best friends is a Muggle-born. Nope, blood doesn't matter to me," Fred told her with a smile.

"Oh."

"Worried were you?"

"A little." Parker saw that the snow in her hand had stopped shifting and settled on the shape of a ferret. "Here, you can have this."

Fred admired the sculpture, but didn't take it. "Hey, neat. Parker, I had a reason for asking you out here."

"I already know, Fred... You're..."

"I'm what?" he asked, surprised and once again confused.

"Nothing."

"Parker, if you know what I'm going to say, then say it."

"You're going to tell me in the nicest way possible that you don't have any interest in me, that you like Angelina instead."

Fred turned his momentary shock into a grin. "Is _that_ what you think I wanted to say to you?"

"I know it is," Parker told him. "Atlade told me you two have a 'thing' and you went to the Yule Ball together. I'm letting you know right now--" She was cut off by warm lips meeting hers. A split second of hesitation passed and she responded to it, dropping her snow ferret on the ground.

Fred had been surprised at her enthusiasm that he and Angelina were together. She was so adamant about it, to the point that he was sure she was going to threaten him with a false promise of harm. He'd sighed, then decided to take action; he strode the three steps toward Parker, took her face gently in his hands and kissed her. She'd hesitated for the briefest of seconds, then dropped the ferret to put her arms around his neck and kiss him back. He was sure he'd even felt her fingers in his hair.

After what had seemed like the sweetest moment in all of eternity, they broke apart. Fred shifted his hands from her face to wrap them around her back. "Parker, did that feel like a kiss from someone who was in love with Angelina Johnson to you?" he asked quietly.

"No... it didn't. It felt like a kiss from someone who really cares about me."

"Which is how I feel about you right now. So no more talk about me being with Angelina, alright? She knows it was out of friendship, no more than that. I'd rather be with you any day."

"Fred, that's sweet..." She trailed off as she turned her face up to kiss him again.

"The gossip mongers are going to have a field day when we go back inside, not that I care," Fred said absently as they let go of each other and began to walk again.

"Why?"

"You know people are; when two people start dating, they make up as many rumors as they can, especially naughty ones."

"Dating? Who said anything about dating?" She saw Fred's face fall and she picked up a snowball and hurled it at him, hitting him in the chest. "It's not wise to assume!" She laughed and trotted away a few paces.

It took Fred a few seconds to realize she was playing around with him. He then picked up some snow and threw it back at her with his own laugh. For several minutes they chased each other with snowballs in their hands and smiles on their faces. Parker finally tripped and fell on her back in the snow, ending the war. Fred fell next to her and took the opportunity to kiss her again. "Not dating, huh? I think I won here."

"I think you did, too. I give up."

"You look so pretty with snow in your hair," Fred said with a slight shyness to his voice.

Parker smiled sweetly and said, "You do, too. Well, not _pretty_. Maybe handsome, but not pretty..." She laughed as he began to tickles her ribs. "OK, OK! You're pretty!"

He let her up. "Thank you. You'd do well to not forget it," Fred said haughtily.

"If _that's_ the way things will go, this relationship is doomed from the start!" Parker responded with a laugh.

Fred got himself up and helped Parker to her feet as well. "Well, what now?"

Parker scratched her head. "We find the prats we consider friends and let them know that you and I are off the market... I think Laddie and Brooke might actually _cry_ in happiness."

**The end of another chapter. I hope I can tie some things together in a while. Please read and review! Tell your friends and I'll give you a cookie!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I wish... Maybe if I give J.K. Rowling one of my peanut butter cookies...**

**I am so, so sorry this took so long to be updated. I was in the hospital for a week, but I managed to write most of this there.**

**Just beware of the end of this chapter, there is some violence mentioned, so the humor rating won't make an appearance there.**

**Oh, just in case it wasn't caught on to, Atlade and Laddie are the same person.**

**Onward!**

The morning of the second task of the Triwizard Tournament dawned grey and chilly. Parker met Fred in the entrance hall for a quick snog behind a statue before breakfast, much to the amusement of their friends. Afterwards, Fred went to eat with his brother, sister and best friend, while Parker went to eat with her friends.

Drake gave her a nod, then said, "Ced doesn't look so good today."

Parker looked over to where Cedric Diggory sat; the teen was pale and somewhat sick-looking, and was barely touching his food. "The task is today; of course he's nervous. Krum and Fleur don't look much better," she responded.

"Harry Potter's missing," Jude told her as he put some toast on her plate. "So're Ron and Hermione."

"The three of them're probably holed up in the library doing some last minute stuff," Drake pointed out. "I saw them in there last night."

"Well, whatever's happening, everyone'll be at the lake later," Parker said around a mouthful of toast.

"Park, that made no sense."

She swallowed her food and said, "It wasn't meant to." As an afterthought, she added, "You know, there aren't a lot of places to be alone and romantic around here."

Drake and Jude looked at each other with amused expressions and shook their heads. They knew what Parker was talking about, and they thought it was funny; few of the lesser-used rooms were heated or had fireplaces, which made romantic rendezvous between Houses nigh to impossible.

"Alright, you two. Honestly... People think _I'm_ bad... Oh, Laddie's calling me. I'll see you two at the task." Parker got up and saw Laddie motioning to out in the entrance hall. Once out there, Parker saw Atlade, Brooke, Fred and George.

"What's up, guys?" she asked as Fred slid his arm around her waist.

"We wanted to walk down to the task together," Brooke answered.

"There's a few hours left before they want us to head down."

"Actually, Park, the girls have something to show you. Poor George and I aren't invited, so we're off to set up _our_ part of the task."

"Your– Fred, you guys don't--"

Fred kissed Parker's forehead and told her, "We're the _twins_, remember? We _always_ have a part."

"Jude and Brooke are twins, and they don't get in anywhere near as much trouble as you two," Parker retorted.

Brooke laughed. "That's because _we_ have morals, dolt."

"We have morals," George spoke up. "Notice that we don't test our products on family or close friends."

"Oh, well then, that just makes everything look rosy. Makes us lucky ones happy to know you."

"Ahh..." George waved his hand at her in a sort of dismissal.

Brooke took it as a sort of hint and shoved Fred away from Parker. "She's ours until the task. Go forth and... set up your 'part'."

Fred lunged forward, quick as a snake, to kiss Parker. "See you later, babe." He waved his fingers amusedly at her and jumped on his twins' back.

"Mental, both of them," Brooke said absently, dragging Parker with her. Atlade followed at a trot. "We have something that'll help you and Fred with, er, your romance 'issues'."

"We don't _have_ issues," Parker protested.

"According to Jude, you do. He talks to both you _and_ the twins, remember, and the both of us are also twins; sometimes we know what each other knows. Something about there being nowhere 'private and romantic'."

Atlade snickered. "You and Fred can't... Oh goodness. You've only been seeing each other a few weeks. You dogs!"

Parker blushed. "Not _that_, you idiot. We just want time alone, with no interruptions. You guys know inter-House relationships are hard, especially while here at school. Where are we going, anyway?"

"We're here, Park," Brooke and Laddie chorused.

"We're looking at a wall."

"You won't be in a moment." Brooke let her friend go and suddenly began to pace back and forth in front of the wall. After three passes, a door suddenly appeared, and the two girls lead a bewildered Parker into the room.

"Where are we?" Parker asked, looking around. The inside of the room looked almost like that of a small Muggle cottage; hardwood floors and walls, fireplace, comfortable-looking furniture, even a small bathroom and what looked like a kitchenette.

"I'm not exactly sure what floor, but we're across from the tapestry with the dancing trolls. Jeff Hardt, or whatever his name was, said it's called the Room of Requirement. Walk by the wall three times and concentrate on what you need, and the room'll provide it, within magical law," Atlade answered

"Jeff Hardt?"

"Some seventh year who told me about it during our first year."

"You've known about this for _that_ long?!"

"I didn't tell you until now because you didn't _need_ it; I just told Brooke last year when that creepy Slytherin was stalking her."

"Still, Laddie, you should have told us sooner."

"Pssh... Not many students know about it, and those who do apparently should only tell those in extreme need... I needed a place first year to deal with the personal issues I had, Brooke needed a place to hide and you, Park, need a place to be alone with your boyfriend. I dunno if Fred's ready to know about this yet, so try and surprise him."

"This gets weirder and weirder, Laddie," Parker responded. "I can't tell Fred?"

"Oh, you can, it's not a problem, just tradition. Try it, though, Park; you can still get the room to provide things while you need it, you just have to think about what you need."

"Umm... Ok." Parker looked around and suddenly thought, _I could use a new scarf to wear to the task_. Turning her head a little, she saw a brand-new scarf in Hufflepuff colors sitting on the fireplace mantle. "Oh glory," she muttered, picking up the item.

"Great, isn't it?" Brooke asked. "I'm pretty sure if you asked the room for lingerie, a bed and a box of rubbers, it'll--"

"BROOKE!"

"What? It's a normal human activity. No need to be a prude about it."

"Brooke... Never mind. I'm just going to let it go."

"Smart girl," Atlade said to her friend. "You've learned."

"Being around you two does that," Parker said to Atlade with a wry grin.

They hung around the room until it was time for the task. Brooke and Atlade were hesitant to go, but Parker reminded them that Fred and George weren't going to behave themselves, a fact that made the girls change their minds. They grabbed whatever things they had with them, grabbed coats from their respective dorms and ran outside.

No sooner had they gotten out of the doors then they saw Fred and George. Parker walked toward them with a smile, then lost the smile and stopped in her tracks. "Are they taking _bets_?" Brooke and Atlade knew better than to answer, but they got their friend walking again. "If they are," she muttered, "so help them!"

Her fear was confirmed when they got within several feet of the twins and heard them calling, "Bets here! Place your bets! Odds are best on Potter!" Fred was taking names and money, while George stood nearby with a suitcase full of paper and a board with betting odds written on it. Both were hawking their "business."

"Fred! Fred! What _are_ you doing?" Parker asked.

"Trying to turn an honest profit, love. Oh, here's your voucher, come back to us after the task. If anyone fails to pay us, trust us, you'll regret it!" he said to the third year that had just placed a bet.

"Fred, there is nothing honest about gambling."

"Oh, sure there is. So long as we pay what we owe and _we_ get paid what _we're_ owed," George told her.

Fred took Parker aside and motioned for the girls to head on to the task, and did the same for Drake and Jude who appeared a few seconds later. "Love, what's wrong?"

"This, Fred. You and George are betting on people's _lives_. The tournament is dangerous and you're taking bets on who's going to survive. It's cruel," Parker said to him, looking him in the eye.

"Parker, we're taking bets on who's going to _win_ the task, not on who's going to die."

"It's the same thing. It isn't right."

Fred sighed. "If anything happens to any of the Champions, all bets will be null and void, and everyone will get to keep their money. Love, George and I aren't heartless." He gently cupped her cheeks. "I thought you knew me better than that."

"I do, Fred. It's just... it seems wrong, somehow." She placed her hands on top of his. "I can't help what I think."

"I know. Some people's _morals_ are a bit different from ours."

Parker laughed. "What would I do without you?"

Fred kissed her softly. "Fall apart, turn to boozing." He took his hands from her face.

"You wish. You know what?"

"What?" He put his arm across her shoulders and lead her back to where his brother was still taking bets.

"I think I'm going to place a bet."

"Parker Levesque? Place a _bet_? The world must be ending. You just told me it's wrong."

"I really don't want to argue over this, Fred. I may not agree with it, but I'll support you if you're happy."

Fred smiled and kissed her on the cheek. "Thank you, love."

"Oi, Fred, did I just hear that _Parker_ wants to place a bet?" George asked.

"I am placing a bet George. Put me down for one Galleon on Cedric winning."

"Diggory?"

"Diggory."

George wrote her name, House and bet on a piece of parchment and immediately duplicated it. He put one copy in the suitcase, and gave her the other. "Thank you for your business, make sure you pay us if your Champion doesn't win."

"Why thank you, Mr. Weasley. I'll make sure of that."

Fred looked around and then turned to George. "Mind taking whoever else wants to bet? Looks like most everyone is already at the lake."

"Go on, Fred." George gave his twin an exaggerated, knowingly lusty wink. Fred tussled with him for a moment and only let him out of a headlock when Parker fell on the ground laughing.

"C'mon, Parker. Let's go join the others. Hey, how much you want to bet George will be stuck watching with a group of Slytherins?"

**After the task**

"Aww, George, you aren't mad that you had to pay me, are you?" Parker asked as they ate dinner. It was one of the rare nights when Parker ate with the Gryffindors. She was sitting between the twins, and she felt the need to tease the rather quiet George.

"Huh? What?"

"I said, you aren't mad that you had to pay me, are you?"

"No, Parker, of course not. Why would I be mad?"

"You're awfully quiet tonight."

"Parker has you there, brother," Fred said around his girlfriend.

"It's been a long day," George said quietly.

"George..."

Parker put her hand on his shoulder. He jumped like he'd stung and looked at her in a way that she found unnerving. "I... I need to talk to you as soon as you're done, Fred. I'm sorry guys, but I'm not hungry." George got up and walked out of the Great Hall.

Lee pushed over into George's empty spot. "What do you think that was about?"

"I don't know, Lee, but I have the feeling it isn't good. I'd better go see what he wants," Fred said quietly. "I'll see you later, right Park?"

"Of course. By the library at seven."

"I'll see you there." He kissed her quickly and got up to follow George. It didn't take long, he found his brother in a hidden passage behind a tapestry leading to Gryffindor Tower.

"Fred."

"What's wrong, George?"

"I think you really need to ask Parker that."

"What are you talking about?"

George sighed. "I talked to Drake today... He told me something that I think you should have found out first. And... I didn't say anything just now because she doesn't want anyone to know unless she truly trusts them not to say anything."

"Then how did you find out?"

"I don't know, really. Drake, for some reason, sought me out during the task and told me. He said I needed to tell you that you have to ask Parker, that it's important."

Fred sighed heavily. He'd known since before he and Parker had started seeing each other that something felt a little wrong around her. It was time, he knew, to find out why.

**Seven 'o clock**

"Hello, love," Fred said as Parker embraced him.

"Hi Fred. I have a surprise for you. Close your eyes and _no peeking_." She took his hand and lead him through the hallways up to the tapestry with the dancing trolls. She smiled as she walked the three passes and the door appeared. She quickly took his hand again and lead him in. "You can open your eyes now."

Fred stared in wonder at the existence of the cottage-like room before him. "Where are we?"

"I'll tell you later, Fred. For now, let's just relax."

They sat together on a couch near the roaring fireplace. Parker moved in to kiss him, but Fred pulled back slightly and shook his head. "Parker, we need to talk."

Parker went slightly pale and sat against the couch's arm. "What about? Does it have to do with why George took off?"

"Yes, love, it does... Are you ok?" He noticed the same pain and fear in her eyes that he'd seen weeks before.

"Not really. I think I know what you're going to ask, but could you just ask me so I'm not nervous for no reason?"

Fred took a deep breath. "George told me that he talked to Drake today. He said that Drake told him something that I need to know, something I should already know."

"Drake told... He had no right--"

"Parker, let's not worry about who told who about what. My only concern is exactly _what_ the problem is."

Parker opened her mouth, but no sound came out. She tried again, but the result was the same. A third try failed, and she burst into tears. Fred moved to embrace her, but she shook him off. She found a voice and said, "I didn't tell you because I was, and still am, so afraid you'll treat me differently."

"Parker--"

"Fred, please, let me tell you. I guess Fate decided it's time you were told, and had Drake tell George what happened so he'd have you question me." She closed her eyes for a moment, then went on, "The summer before last, between our fourth and fifth years, I met a guy during summer break. Remember, I'm Muggle-born, so most of the locals think I'm away at a foreign private school for most of the year. Anyway, this guy, his name was Tory, became interested in me while I was home for the summer.

"One day, I was doing some homework on the front porch when he came up and started talking to me. Oh, how charming he was. He asked me to the movies that night and I said yes. We ended up becoming an item in town, even though he was looked down upon for his family being new to the area.

"Drake had met Tory and immediately didn't like him. He didn't follow us around, or spy, or anything like that, but he watched out for me. I'm sure he told you we've known each other since we were babies. Anyway, he let Tory know he wasn't trusted, and Tory insisted on Drake leaving me alone. I didn't appreciate it much, but I thought I was in love and thought it was all part of the compromising people do in relationships.

"Tory began getting a bit more pushy when we were alone, even when I told him no. He would get mad and say that I was leading him on, that I should give myself to him if I insisted on 'doing what I did to him.' I didn't know what I was doing wrong, but I'd apologize and tell him that I didn't mean to lead him on, that I was new to relationships like what we had." Fred began clenching his hands into fists, his nails digging into his palms.

"One night, my parents, brother and sister went out for dinner. I didn't go since I'd made plans to be with Tory a few days before, and my parents trusted me, so it was ok with them. Tory brought food over, and we ate dinner. He popped in a movie, and we began watching whatever it was. Not long in, we started snogging, and he began doing things I'd told him time and time again that I wasn't ready for. I began to protest, and that was when he got very angry. He called me names and said I was _still_ leading him on, even though I'd promised not to. He said that he was tired of it, and he wanted to make sure I wouldn't do it again. He tied my hands and feet with curtain sashes to make sure I couldn't hit him, and he started ripping off my clothes.

"I screamed as loud as I could, but it didn't affect him at all. He never even tried to hit me. I managed to do some damage, though, when I bit his nose and ear, holding on until they were bloody. Once he had me down to wearing just my undies, he began acting worse and made horrible threats if I didn't comply with what he wanted. I spat in his eye and it completely broke his control. He picked up his belt and raised it to hit me, when my front door suddenly swung open. Tory turned in surprise, only to be knocked out with a wooden rod. Drake held the rod in his hands." Tears were flowing even more freely down Parker's face. "Drake saved me that night... He untied me, wrapped me in a blanket and took me to his house. He called the bobbies and they came and arrested Tory. We became even closer then, as he had been my savior in my darkest hour, but I never went so far as to become obsessively dependent on him. He told me later on that he'd sensed something wrong in my house that night and decided to come and check things out."

Parker sobbed into her hands. "Aside from my family, the only ones I've ever told were Brooke, Laddie and Jude. I was so afraid that if I told you, Fred, you'd treat me like a head case and avoid me at all costs. I'm afraid that if I get close to you, you'll try to hurt me like Tory did..." Her voice dropped off.

"Oh, love..." Fred slid across the couch to pull her into his arms. Her sobs were muffled by his shirt, her tears absorbed by it. "Love, oh Parker... I can't imagine what he put you through." He placed his chin on top of her head and ran one hand up and down her back. "I don't understand why anyone would do such a thing. Love, you know I'd never hurt you, and I never, never will. I care about you far too much to try and hurt you." He raised his head and gently turned her face to look up at his own. "I don't think differently about you at all. I understand now why you look so hurt sometimes, why you sometimes pull away from me. I can wait, love, I can take the time it'll take to heal you so we can be together and not have any fear."

"Oh, Fred.." Parker resumed her place against his chest. "I don't deserve you."

"Of course you do. You need someone else to fear for you besides Drake and the girls."

She snickered through her tears. "You forgot Jude."

"Well, sometimes he just fits in as one of the girls, so..."

Parker pulled her head up from Fred's chest. "You know just what to say to make me smile and forget why I'm upset."

Fred looked at her seriously. "I don't want you to forget about being upset, Park. I want us to take this mess and try to fix it so neither of us is fearful of the other. We can do this, love. I know we can." He used his thumbs to wipe away the remaining tears. "I just hope you can trust me."

"I do trust you, it's just... The memory pops up every now and then, and it makes intimacy difficult."

"Intimacy can wait, love. I'm content with just holding you."

Parker smiled and put her arms around Fred's neck. "I really, really don't deserve you. You know, I brought you up here tonight in hopes that we could get closer, but I guess plans changed."

"You know what?"

"What?"

"Getting closer doesn't have to mean sex, love. I just want to hold you tonight, to let you know I care about you."

"All night?" Parker asked, pulling back so she could see his face.

"All night." Fred embraced her again and sat her next to him so they could cuddle together and ignore the rest of the world, just until dawn.

**I'm going to try and update a lot sooner next time! Please review!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: Not mine...**

**I **_**am**_** sad that I had to make Parker's past a little dark in the last chapter, but it was necessary... She needed to **_**not**_** be perfect, and it gives her and Fred something to work for.**

**Oh, Just a possible language warning... you never know when you'll need it.**

Parker woke up slightly stiff the next morning without knowing exactly why... that was, until she got her eyes to focus. The couch had turned into a sofa bed, and she saw that she was curled up against Fred's chest, his arms around her. She tilted her face upwards and saw that he was still asleep, and was slightly snoring. _He looks so cute when he's sleeping, but, then again, all guys do. I love the way his hair falls across his face, and moves when he breathes. I've never noticed the freckles under his eyes and across his nose before._ She shifted slightly, and Fred responded by groaning and pulling her closer.

"Fred," Parker whispered. "Fred. Fred, you need to get up." He groaned again and shook his head. "Fred, it's morning. We need to get to our dorms."

"No, we don't," he murmured into her hair. "I'm good right here."

Parker peeled herself out of his embrace and he stretched crankily. "I'm sure that at least _one_ person has noticed we weren't in our beds last night."

"And whoever has is going to have fun talking nonsense. I have to say, Park," Fred told her as he got up, "that had to be the best night's sleep I've had in ages." He winked at her.

"Oh, behave yourself." Parker looked at the clock above the mantle. "Bloody hell, we've missed breakfast!"

Fred pulled her to her feet. "I think we'll live until lunch, love. I don't know about you, though, but I need a shower."

"As do I. C'mon. If anyone knows we were gone, we may as well face it with a smile."

**Lunch**

"PARKER, WHERE WERE–"

"Parker, if you were--"

"Did you at least--"

"You know, Professor--"

"Guys, SHUT UP!" Parker shouted at her friends. She'd just sat down and all of them swarmed over to her and began loudly asking questions. "Can't a girl eat?"

"No," Drake answered. "So you might want to answer our questions first, like, where were you last night?"

"With Fred."

"With... What the hell is wrong with you? Have you no shame?" Atlade asked.

"I'm not ashamed of spending the night with my boyfriend."

The girls pounded her with questions, many of which Parker refused to answer. Drake asked a few, making sure to keep them very impersonal. He listened until they all quieted down, then asked, "Park, did you talk to Fred last night?"

"I did."

"Oh," he said uncomfortably.

"Drake, I'm _not_ mad at you for telling George. Actually, I wanted to thank you for doing that; it made telling Fred that much easier."

"How can you... You're not mad?"

"No. You know I believe that things happen for a reason, and something must have happened for you to have made the twins aware of my pain."

"Lee, shut up!" they heard from the Gryffindor table. "There are some things..." Fred and George were laughing rather than angry, which made Parker and the rest relax; they'd thought Fred was mad, and that George was defending him. "There are some things--"

"Miss Levesque, I need to speak with you when you are finished eating," a quiet voice said from behind the large group. They all looked to see Professor Sprout standing nearby. Parker began to stand, but the older woman shook her head. "Take your time, finish your food, talk to your friends. Just make sure you stop at my office."

"I will, Professor." Looking at her friends, Parker said, "I'm dead." She saw that Fred was receiving the same speech from Professor McGonagall at his table. "Professor McGonagall doesn't look all that happy... Poor Fred."

"You guys deserve it," Brooke spoke up. "There _is_ a limit to what they let couples do."

"Professor Sprout?" Parker asked uncertainly at the office door a half hour later.

"Come in, child, come in. Please, sit," the teacher said, motioning to a chair. Once her student sat, she said, "I suppose you know why I wanted to have you down here."

"I do, Professor." Parker blushed and hung her head.

"Don't be ashamed, Parker; young love is a beautiful thing. However, you have to think about how I felt when the student I wanted to talk to wasn't in her dorm after hours, and how none of your friends had seen you since you had left for your rendezvous with Fred Weasley. I checked most of the places young lovers have been known to go, but the two of you weren't there. I had to go to Professor McGonagall and let her know Fred might be missing as well as you. She was not what I would call happy."

"I'm sorry, Professor. We didn't really intend to stay out all night, just until we had to come back... I think we fell asleep."

"Where were the two of you? It was only Professor McGonagall and myself looking, mind you, but there weren't many places you could have been."

"We were in a magic room up on the seventh floor, I think. I found it last night when we went walking, and inside it was warm and cozy. I don't remember exactly where it was; we walked out this morning and found ourselves near the Defense classroom."

"Parker, as much as I hate to do it, I have to punish you for doing what you did; Fred is being punished too. Professor McGonagall and I agreed that you two will be getting three days detention with Professor Snape, starting Monday evening. He will tell you both in class what time you are to report to him that night."

"I understand, Professor."

Professor Sprout smiled warmly. "This is the first time I've ever had to call you here to discuss your conduct, Parker. I hope I never have to call you here for this again. Please, just don't take off at night again. I was worried something horrible had happened to you in my care; I _am_ responsible for you Hufflepuffs, after all."

"Yes, ma'am. I apologize for my irresponsible behavior and I also hope it won't happen again."

"You have a unique way of apologizing, Parker," Professor Sprout said with a chuckle. "You're free to go and enjoy the rest of your day, just make sure you don't break any more major rules."

"Of course, Professor. Have a good day."

**The next day**

"Park, can you believe they gave us detention?" Fred asked Parker as he sat next to her in Potions.

"We deserved it."

"It matters that we deserved it?"

"Not really, but I figured I'd point it out."

"So when are we going back?" he asked, kissing her below her right ear. Her shudder didn't go unnoticed.

"Behave yourself. I don't know when we'll get to go back, Fred, McGonagall is watching us so closely I swear I feel her _breathing_ on us."

"As astounding as your love life is, Miss Levesque, Mr. Weasley, we lack the time for it in _my class_. Keep your mouths closed and pay attention to what you're_ supposed_ to be doing, not on what forays you're planning for later tonight," Professor Snape snapped. "By the way, the two of you are to report to my office tonight at seven p.m. _sharp_, no later. Show up one second later, and you will dread each coming morning."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Fred responded tiredly.

"Mind yourself, Weasley." Snape waved his wand and all of their books opened to the correct page. "You have an hour to complete your potion. Samples will be brought to my desk for grading. Start _now_."

The students struggled to concoct the complicated potion, which they knew was going to take longer than an hour to prepare. They were all smart enough to know that asking Snape for help was out of the question; they rather liked their limbs and emotions intact. Parker was amused by the fact that Fred was helping _her_, instead of the other way around. Before they knew it, the hour was up and Snape was glaring at each of his dozen students as they set their sample flasks on his desk.

"Levesque, Weasley, remember: _seven p.m._."

"Professor, we _remember_," Parker spat. "I think if you say it enough--"

"Mental, she is. Talked to her parents about having her committed," Fred said as he put his hand over his girlfriend's mouth. "Doesn't even know what she's saying half the time. Come along, love and we'll find a way to make you not loony." He flashed Snape a grin and lead Parker out of the room.

"Don't tell me not to prod at Snape, Fred, you and George do it all the time," Parker said when Fred finally let her go.

"I wasn't about to, but Snape looked pretty angry."

Parker balled her fists and took a deep breath. Her eyes lost their angry, dark green color and took on their normal sea-green sheen. "I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize. Just pick your fights where you know you can win... Or at least distract them enough that you can get away and plan a better win for another day."

Parker hugged Fred around the waist. "Your advice is one of the reasons I like you so much."

"And here I thought it was my dashing good looks."

**Detention**

"Tonight the two of you will be dissecting barrels of pickled toads and you will put the innards in their respective bowls for my classes to use. The rest you will put into your buckets to later empty into Professor Sprout's compost heap. Your gloves are not necessary," Professor Snape told Fred and Parker that night. "There will be no talking; you are here as punishment, not to act as though you are on a date."

"Yes, Professor," they chorused.

"Good. Now sit yourselves down and get to work." Snape sat himself down at his desk and waited for them to start gutting the toads.

Fred and Parker sat and began their daunting task. Snape busied himself with reading and grading essays, but lifted his eyes to watch them every few minutes. Parker was disgusted with having to take the guts out of the dead toads, but she managed to keep her dinner where it was supposed to be. Fred, on the other hand, looked just peachy, like the whole thing didn't bother him the least.

"This whole thing is a load of dragon dung," Parker barely whispered to Fred a while later.

"He's just making us do this so he doesn't have to," he whispered back.

"I wish there was a way to make this less boring."

"Oh, there is. Just watch." Fred made one of the toads invisible, then jinxed it to fly. They couldn't see the toad, but they heard the _splat_ it made as it hit Snape in the forehead. Snape snapped his head up to look at his detentionees, who were busy with their task.

"Alright, which one of you did it?"

"Did what, Professor?" Parker asked innocently.

"You know _what_."

"Really, Professor, we've been gutting toads for the past hour. How could we have done anything to you?" Fred asked.

Snape grumble and snapped, "Get back to work. You still have two and a half hours to finish for tonight."

They managed another half hour before Parker took her turn flinging an invisible toad at their teacher. Snape ignored the second, save for a scowl that crossed his face. Together they launched a third not fifteen minutes later, a feat in itself, as Snape had his eyes just about glued to them.

"THAT... IS... IT!" Snape bellowed, standing up. "I don't know how the two of you are doing it--"

"Doing _what_, Professor?" Parker asked. "You keep bothering us while we do our detention punishment, how are we supposed to get it done?"

"Park's right, we can't get anything done if we keep getting interrupted. Seriously, we'll be here an extra day or three if we don't finish our punishments each night we're down here."

"You both border on expulsion!"

"For defending ourselves against false accusations? Professor, that's not fair."

"No one ever said life was fair, Weasley."

"Then don't accuse us of doing things you know we couldn't have done," Parker spoke up.

"Both of you will report here at the same time tomorrow night, now GET OUT OF MY SIGHT!"

"We're finished for tonight, then?"

"WEASLEY!"

"He must be getting mental, too, Professor. I'll get him upstairs." Parker flung another invisible toad at Snape and managed to close the door before they heard the Potion teachers' roar.

"That was fun," Parker said as they walked upstairs from the dungeons.

"Yeah, and we managed to get out of detention early, too," Fred responded. "I need to tell George about that method."

"But not right now, Fred."

"Why not? It's not late yet."

"It isn't, but we're _supposed_ to be in detention, it's too early for us to be out yet."

"Oh yeah." Fred pulled Parker into a niche behind a statue and kissed her.

"Fred, what are you doing?" she asked.

"Trying to pass some time, love."

"Fred... Fred, no," Parker said in a shaky voice.

"Oh, Parker..." Fred let Parker go and let her get out of the niche. He followed suit and told her, "I'm so sorry."

"Fred, don't worry about it. You were just trying to help. Time, remember?"

He wrapped his arms around her. "Time."

Parker put her own arms around his neck. "I wish we could stay like this forever."

"Me too." He pressed his lips to her hair and just held her close. "However, we can't, since I just saw Filch's stupid cat at the end of the hall."

Parker let loose a word that Fred was sure would curl his mothers' hair and let him go, then took off down the hall. Fred followed her, then said, "Wait, I think I know where we can go."

"What?"

Fred grabbed her hand. "Just trust me." He lead her down a few halls and up some stairs before he stopped in front of a large mirror. He muttered a word, and the mirror swung forward. "In here." Parker looked slightly panicked, but calmed when he said, "I'm not going to try anything, we can hide in here for a while."

Parker hurried in behind the mirror and pulled out her wand. "Lumos."

Fred pulled the mirror shut behind him and lit his own wand. "Blimey, I forgot this got blocked off some."

"There's enough room, Fred, we'll be okay. How'd you know this was here?"

The teen extinguished his wand and conjured up something for them to sit on and a large blanket. He re-lit his wand and motioned for her to sit, then draped the blanket over them. "It's a bit of a story."

Parker took his hand in hers. "Tell me."

Fred proceeded to tell her how he and George had found the Marauder's Map years before, but no longer possessed it. He then explained some of the things they had done over the years that she either hadn't known about, or hadn't understood. Parker then told Fred about the trouble her brother and sister had gotten into in the past, and the things they still did to her whenever she was home.

They'd been hiding and talking for over an hour and a half before Fred suddenly looked at his watch. "I need to get you to your common room."

"What for?" Parker asked sleepily.

"It's nearly ten thirty!"

"Oh yeah... We'd be getting back from detention about now, and it shouldn't look too suspicious if we get back too much later."

They both stood and checked outside of the mirror to see anyone was around, ans, seeing no one, left the passageway. Fred carefully lead her down to the kitchen hallway before heading to his own common room. Before he let Parker out from behind a painting into the hallway, he kissed her and said, "You worry too much about rules. Live a little, and, I assure you, you'll like what happens."

"I'll think on it. Good night, love." Parker kissed him back and gave him a hug.

"Good night, love." A kiss on her forehead, and he was suddenly gone.

Parker walked down the hallway to the painting that guarded the Hufflepuffs. Before she could even tickle the fruit and whisper the password, a voice behind her yelled, "AH HA! I caught you! No out-of-bed forays for you tonight, missy!"

"I just got out of detention, if you don't mind. I'm actually going to be getting back about this time for the next two days, too," Parker spat.

"I'll be checking that with Professor Sprout, I will," Filtch told her.

"Go ahead. Now, I want to go to bed, and I can't get n my common room unless you _leave_." Filtch sauntered off and she whispered, "Wonky sort" whilst she tickled an apple. The painting swung forward and she walked in.

"Night Drake, night Jude. I'm done for tonight," Parker said absently, walking to her dorm. She changed into her bedclothes, and fell into bed, drifting off into dreams about her Fred.

**Another chapter, another chance for you loving people to review. I know this chapter was a bit... ugh... but it filled in a gap. Time will start going a bit faster after this, and I'm hoping to give certain characters more attention.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Wishes, unfortunately, do not always come true...**

Midmorning late-spring light streamed in through the glass of the greenhouse roof, heating up the backs of the necks of the students who worked there. The sixth year N.E.W.T. students were busy trying to transplant some odds plants they had never seen before, and the name of which they hadn't caught when Professor Sprout had told them. George had managed to pry apart Parker and his twin and get her as a partner for class.

"So, uh, Parker, you and Fred have been seeing each other how long?" George asked as he yanked his plant out of its pot.

"Hmm... It's what? May? About three, three and a half months. Why?" she asked in response.

"It seems longer than that, that's all."

"George..."

"No, seriously, Parker, I was just curious!" George protested, holding his hands up in surrender.

Parker laughed. "For someone several inches taller than me, you sure seem rather frightened."

"I've seen you get angry, or did you forget what you did to that seventh-year bloke last month?"

"I didn't forget, I just misplaced the memory. Besides, if he wants to follow Fred and I all over place and watch us to see what we do, he deserves to have his--"

"It isn't something _any_ guy wishes to discuss, thank you. That area is rather sensitive."

She snickered and looked around at the friends she had in class; Brooke was paired with Jude, as always, and Drake was sitting with Atlade, a deep blush on his cheeks. Fred, meanwhile, was working with Lee, and they had themselves secluded in a corner to discuss new things to do to people. She nudged George and told him, "Check out Drake, I think he suddenly has a crush on Atlade."

George turned to look and his jaw dropped. "_Drake_ likes _Laddie_? Bloke's gone mad, he has."

"Just because she jinxes you at every opportunity..."

"I am innocent in that respect, thank you."

"Yeah, okay, and I'm Professor McGonagall. You and your twin lack the ability to be innocent."

"You're dating him," he said with a shrug.

**A week later**

"Park, did you hear? Barty Crouch was killed!"

"Mister Weasley, keep your voice down in my library or you will never be allowed back here!" Madame Pince yelled when Fred had finished talking.

"I'm _never_ here, so it won't matter to me," he said back.

"Just mind yourself." She walked away.

"So did you hear?" Fred asked as he sat across from Parker.

"I did just now. Come to think of it, I think the whole school heard you."

"What's wrong?" he asked worriedly.

"I'm just tired, is all. Mum owled me and said my little brother is sick, and she's more than a bit mad that I can't get home to be with him."

"Go tell Dumbledore. He'll understand and get you home."

"My place is here, Fred. Besides, Mum makes a big deal out of Rupert since he's the baby. I guarantee all he has is a summer cold or a bout of allergies. Anyway..." She sighed and looked her boyfriend in the face. "Sorry I'm not interesting today."

"Nah, you're always interesting, Park. But anyway, you mind if I go on about Crouch?"

"You have my leave to proceed."

Fred smiled; he loved it when she talked smart. "From what I heard, the Champions were taken down to the Quidditch pitch to be told about the third task, which, by the way, is in a month. After they got their instructions, Krum pulled Harry aside and they saw Crouch or something, and Harry came to the castle to get help, but Crouch was dead and the body gone by the time they got back and Krum was Stunned. Dumbledore said they have to have an investigation of some sort."

"Makes sense that they would, I mean, someone _died_. They'll figure it out, though."

"I hope so." Fred moved in to kiss her when Drake suddenly ran out from behind a shelf, looking harried.

"I need your help,"

"Looks like it, mate." Fred pulled a chair out for Drake to sit in. "What's on your mind?"

"I need your guys' help in asking Laddie out."

Fred and Parker both got large grins on their faces. "How long did it take you to figure out you fancied her?" Parker asked, trying not to laugh.

"You mean you've _known_?! For how long?!"

"Weeks."

"You both... I hate you two. You've watched me--"

"Do nothing? Yeah, we have."

Drake turned colors and began calling them every foul name he could think of. When he was done, he listened to the advice they had for him. Parker gave him some pointers about approaching Atlade, as she knew the young woman better than either of them. They told their friend to try it out and then find them to let them know what had happened.

"Poor guy's so awkward around the ladies," Parker chuckled after Drake had left. "I just hope Atlade is in a good mood today or he'll be regretting having the ability to think."

"George is biased against her."

"I know. And it amuses me."

Fred took Parker's hand in his and said, "I was thinking..."

"A dangerous past time."

"...Do you want to come home with me for part of this summer? Mum would be more than thrilled to have you around, it's all us boys at home."

"I dunno, Fred. I'll have to see what happens at home with Rupert, and I'm sure Summer will have some reason or another to gloat, since she's _perfect_."

"Your sister sounds like Percy."

"A lot like." She thought for a second. "Let me send Mum an owl and see what she says."

**Beginning of June**

Hogwarts was beginning to get quieter as the weeks passed, since the school had the end-of-year exams coming up. The fifth and seventh years studied harder than everyone else, as the O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s were the most important tests they'd ever take in school. Parker and Fred, Brooke and Jude, George and Lee and the new group couple, Drake and Laddie, took advantage of the nice weather to study and do homework outside. Most evenings they were found sitting on rocks near the lake, books spread everywhere.

One night, Parker pulled a sheet of parchment out of her bag and passed it wordlessly to Fred. He shot her a confused look, but her only response was a motion for him to read it. It was from her mother.

_Dear Parker,_

_I got your letter today, and I am surprised at you. I just told you not long ago that little Rupert is __sick__, and you ask me if you can go to your boyfriend's house for the summer? You need to sort out your priorities before you ask me such a question, daughter mine; your little brother's health and welfare should come before your sexual desires. I was quite unaware you had a medical license that enabled you to diagnose your brother with a __cold__, much less that you had the ability to do so from where you are. _

_Furthermore, who __is__ this Fred Weasley that you are seeing? When did this happen? You never told us about any boyfriend. Your father and I don't know him __or__ his family, so why should we trust him? For all you know, he just wants your virginity, or whatever virginity you have left after that incident with Tory two years ago, and he wants you at his house so his family will help. You don't know what kind of people they are, Parker, whether or not they'll rob you blind in your sleep and throw you out the door to nothingness._

_I'm sorry, but I can't trust someone I've never met, so I am denying you permission to go home with this boy, Parker, you are to come __home__ at the end of term. That is my final word, I will hear no more about it._

_Love,_

_Mum_

_P.s. What about that Diggory boy we've heard about? I've met his parents, and he seems a decent sort. You should chat him up and try seeing him instead of this Fred._

"Wow," Fred said to Parker. "Your mum sounds like quite the lady." He handed her back the letter.

"My mum is a prat, is what she is. Did you see what she accused you and your family of? What she accused _me_ of?" An angry tear splattered on the parchment. "I hate her. I didn't even address that letter to her; it was to my dad. I'm sure he never even saw it. That's okay, though. I sent a reply, and a copy of Mum's letter, and told my owl to let no one but my dad take it from her. He sent me back this." She handed him another letter.

_Dearest daughter,_

_You were right. I never saw your first letter. If I had, I assure you your mother never would have sent you what she did. Your mother harbors hard feelings toward you, as you know, for being __different__ from her other children. You also know she thought it was fascinating and was keen on hearing about Hogwarts from you every summer up until two years ago. Despite what she believes, the rest of us know that young __Tory__ was the one who is to blame for all of that, __NOT__ you. I plan on trying to find someone in your world who can try to help her, else I am taking Summer and Rupert away from her and I won't go back._

_Enough of that now. I noticed she denied you a summer with your newfound love, for reasons that astound me. I'm overruling her, and you can spend as much of your summer with him as you'd like, but remember that __I'd__ like to see you, as do your brother and sister. But who are we to say you can't spend some time with him and know him outside of school? So we don't know his parents, big deal. I'm sure your mother wouldn't like them anyway. I also told your mother that trying to set you up with Cedric is out of the question, I saw his father recently and Ced is dating a girl named Cho, if I'm not mistaken._

_And to answer your inquiry, yes, Rupert has a summer cold, nothing more. You obviously trusted your mother to make a much bigger deal than necessary._

_Try to enjoy the rest of term, and make sure you study for your exams. _

_Love you, Park_

_Dad_

"I like your dad," Fred told her with a hug. "He seems to have his head on straight."

"Fred, I get to see you! All summer if I want!"

"I already sent Mum an owl, and she said it's be okay if you stayed with us. Thing is, you'll have to bunk with Ginny."

"That's no problem, Fred."

"I think I should let George know he'll have another sister, if only for the summer." They both laughed.

**The third task**

The group of sixth years were as anxious as everyone else as to what was happening inside of the maze. They knew Fleur was already out, and so was Krum, and it was down to the two Hogwarts Champions. Parker was worried for Cedric, her House- and year-mate, and she thought it was taking far too long for neither of the boys to have reached the center of the maze. Jude was even moreso, as he was good friends with Cedric and they had neighboring beds in their dorm.

Parker was holding onto Fred's hand tightly with worry. He understood and periodically squeezed her hand for support. She smiled every time, but the smile faded quickly. Atlade was doing the same for worried Drake, who was in the same state as Jude. George was a short distance away, talking to Lee and Brooke and a group of seventh years who had placed bets on the task.

Out of nowhere, a green flash came from just inside the maze. Most of the crowd began to cheer, as the task was at an end and they wanted to see which Hogwarts Champion had won. Parker was on her feet, trying to see, and Fred was next to her, standing on his seat. A sudden scream brought the cheers to a halt.

"Oh no..." Fred whispered. He was able to see Mad-Eye leading a much-battered Harry away from the maze, and Professor Dumbledore trying to quiet down the bereaved wails of...

"Fred?" Parker's voice was shaking, her eyes asking a thousand questions. The students in front of her were gasping in what seemed to be horror, some were screaming.

"Park..." He was at a loss for words. How could he tell her one of her own House was dead?

"What aren't you telling me?" Parker stood on her own seat. Before Fred could stop her, she saw Amos Diggory crying heartbreak over the body of Cedric, who lay at the entrance to the maze. Her scream was added to those around her.

Fred grabbed Parker and got her back on her feet before she fell and hurt herself. Tears were running down her face as she weakly pummeled his chest with her fists. "It's not fair! It's not fair! Cedric never hurt anybody..." He pulled her to him and let her cry herself out on his shirt. He kept her there as Flitwick and one of the other teachers picked up Cedric's body and lead Amos away from the crowd.

"Everyone, listen to me!" Dumbledore called out. The crowd fell silent, except for the frequent sobs. "I'm sure you all are aware that Cedric Diggory did not survive the third task of this tournament. Each and every one of your teachers will be available to talk to about this event. Professor Sprout will momentarily take the Hufflepuffs to their common room for their own mourning. Excuse me for being short, but there is another matter that requires my attention at the moment." He turned and walked quickly up to the castle, some of the teachers following.

George had wandered over during Dumbledore's speech with Brooke in tow. Brooke went to be with Jude, Drake and Atlade. George asked his twin a silent question, and at the shake of Fred's head, placed his hand on Parker's shoulder. Parker looked through one bloodshot eye at who was touching her, then let go of Fred to cry for a moment against his twin.

She pulled away from George and said tearfully, "Thank you." She walked over to her group of friends and joined in on the large hug and began crying again. "Jude, Drake, you guys ok?" Both boys nodded an affirmative and she noticed Atlade holding Drake's hand, and Brooke was at Jude's side.

Lee was with Fred and George when she got back to them a minute later. He saw Parker and said bye to his friends, leaving them to be alone. Fred wrapped his arms protectively around Parker when she pressed her face to his chest again, and pressed his cheek to her hair. George put one of his hands on each of their shoulders to comfort them as best as he could. They suddenly heard a snide voice from behind them say, "You're so used to sharing everything you own that you've moved on to sharing girls, too? I knew you were poor, Weaselbys, but this is going a bit far, isn't it?"

"If I were you, Malfoy, I'd leave now; this is neither the time nor the place, and I'd thank you to not insult the person who makes my brother happy, you won't like what happens when I get angry," George threatened. Malfoy shot him a glare, but moved on. All too soon, Professor Sprout came over to them.

"Parker, child, you need to come back to the castle with me."

"No!" Parker shouted, shaking her head.

"Parker, you have to join the rest of the House so we can remember Cedric properly and so we can get some sleep." She motioned for Fred to let go, but he shook his head just enough for her to notice. Sighing, the teacher tried coaxing Parker's hands from Fred's back with no success. "Parker..."

"No! I won't let him go! You can't make me go with you!" Professor Sprout noticed that year's Head Boy was trying the same with Atlade and Drake, with the same amount of success, and, boy, was Atlade putting up a fight.

"I'll go talk to someone. You stay _here_."

"Park, you should go be with the rest of the Hufflepuffs," George said quietly.

"I won't! The only comfort I want is from those I love, not people who only like me because we're in the same House, a House who just lost someone."

"Fred, say something to her."

"I think Parker should be allowed to grieve however she wants," Fred responded. He felt Parker turn so her back was against his chest. He put his cheek to her hair again and just held her.

George gave up trying to reason with them. He looked up and saw Professor Sprout coming back toward them. "I just talked to Professor McGonagall for a quick second. Dumbledore is going to make the announcement in a little while; they're going to conjure sleeping bags in the Great Hall for those from different Houses that want to grieve together. You can go up as soon as you get moving; this is not a place to stay."

"Thank you, Professor," Parker whispered.

"Parker, I understand why you won't leave this young man. Just don't make me regret asking for this."

"I won't."

Fred took his arms from around her chest and took her hand instead. She nodded, and he asked, "Ready George?"

"In a minute, Fred. I'm going to tell Jude and them. Go on, I'll be up there in a few minutes."

George was as good as his word; Fred had just helped Parker into her sleeping bag and was finishing magicking it to be large enough for two when his twin turned up. George grabbed a bag and placed it on Parker's other side. "They'll be up any time, Fred. Dumbledore's just delivered the message."

Fred nodded from where he leaned on his elbow. "Grieving or not, everyone'll be asleep before long. Parker already is, poor girl is worn out." At her name, she snuggled close to him.

By the time everyone was accounted for, Brooke, Jude, Atlade, Drake and Lee were positioned in a circle around the twins and Parker. When asked why he was suddenly protecting Parker, too, George told them that seeing her in distress, along with Fred, made him want to protect _both_ of them, not just the girl. They went to sleep not long after, to the occasional sobbing fits or the sniffling of noses.

**I didn't want to kill Cedric, I swear, but it was necessary for the story. **

**Please, review!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: Still no...**

**Language warning... Just because...**

Parker didn't know how she made it through the week leading up to Cedric's service; all anyone was talking about was Cedric's death and what had caused it, and how young Harry Potter had survived. Most of her time was spent away from her fellow Hufflepuffs and with her friends out on the Hogwarts grounds. Fred and George stuck with her as much as she tolerated, as they were concerned about her.

The service was held the last day of term, at what was usually the Leaving Feast. Dumbledore and the teachers allowed the students to sit with whomever they wanted, so the twins, Atlade, Lee and Brooke sat with their friends at the Hufflepuff table. With Fred on her right and George on her left, Parker felt a little better, a little safer with them nearby.

Dumbledore stood and gave his speech about Cedric's death and events surrounding it. Most Hufflepuffs had tears running down their faces while the Headmaster spoke, and Fred held his girlfriends' hand in his when her tears began to fall. The room was silent apart from sniffs and sobs, but there was a sort of uproar when Dumbledore revealed that Voldemort had returned, and was the one responsible for Cedric's untimely death. Everyone slept uneasily that night after hearing about You-Know-Who's return, whether they believed it or not.

The next morning, the students left for the summer break, or to go on to their adult lives. Parker and her friends tried to cram into one compartment, but as there were eight of them, they had to split up between two; Parker and Fred were with George and Brooke, Atlade and Drake were with Lee and Jude. Most of the group ended up sleeping on the way home, Drake had his head in Laddie's lap, and Laddie was paying chess with Jude while Lee slept against the window. In their compartment, Brooke was using George as a pillow while he looked over some notes that he and Fred had made about their products during the year. His twin, meanwhile, sat cuddled with Parker, wide awake and talking.

"Another year... gone," Parker told them. "It's hard to believe."

"I know, but Fred and me made some great advances with our products," George said without looking up.

"Next year should prove interesting, then," she responded.

"Yeah, maybe..."

"Maybe?"

Fred spoke up. "George and I aren't sure if we're going back for our last year, love. Not with what just happened to Cedric, with You-Know-Who coming back. The Ministry thinks Dumbledore's a bit whacked, so you know they'll want to be in the business of the school."

"But still..."

"You're not mad, Park?"

"No. A bit disappointed, but I understand."

"Parker, we said we _aren't sure_. We still may go back," George pointed out.

"I know."

Fred let Parker go so he could see her properly. "While you're disappointed, I guess now's the time to let you know."

"Let me know what?" Parker asked, slightly fearful.

"First, it's nothing bad, so stop worrying. Listen, though. Our Mum got a hold of Dumbledore and told him about what was supposed to be going on this summer. He told us there's going to be a lot going on, and he's worried about the safety of us Weasleys... and also _your_ safety."

"Mine? Ok, I don't see what _I_ have to do with anything..." Parker trailed off.

"Dumbledore is going to move us into hiding within a few weeks, love. He's afraid of you staying with us while we're at home, so he wanted us to pass on--"

"Wait, what?" Parker exclaimed.

"– He wanted us to pass on to you that while he's concerned about safety, he also knows we're together romantically, and the world can always use more love. So he told your parents, and ours, that you can stay with us until we get moved."

"Why can't I go with you?" she asked quietly.

"For safety, Dumbledore said," George answered. "As far as we understand, the only ones outside the family they're going to bring in are Hermione Granger... and Harry, since _he_ knows who Harry's fond of, and Dumbledore wants them safe."

"And You-Know-Who doesn't know about you, love, and I'd rather it stayed that way," Fred told her with a kiss on the cheek. Parkers' response was to throw her arms around his neck so he could hug her.

"Ughh... Whaa...?" Brooke moaned, sitting up. A string of drool lead from the corner of her mouth to the soggy spot on George's chest where she had been laying.

"Oh, gross!" George yelled. "Did you _have_ to drool?"

Brooke ran her hand over her mouth. "I do _not_ drool."

"Than why is there a wet spot on my shirt?!" he cried, pointing to his chest.

"Oh. I guess I do. Sorry 'bout that."

"I have to change my shirt. Girls, turn away."

"Why should we turn away?" Brooke asked. "You're changing your shirt, not your unders."

"You might be in awe at the greatness of my being shirtless," George responded as he fished a new t-shirt out of his trunk.

"In awe of what, your lack of chest hair?" Parker asked. George let out a series of sounds that reminded her of one of her younger brothers' temper tantrums, which made the rest of them laugh.

"Oh, George, she has you there," Fred choked out.

"Oh yeah? If I have no chest hair, neither do you, _twin brother_."

"I have hair, George, don't be jealous."

The reddened twin glared at his brother, but he quickly turned it into a smile. He made sure the blinds in their compartment were closed, then pulled his drool-spotted t-shirt off over his head.

"George, what are you doing?" Brooke asked through a laugh; he was swinging his shirt around his head, and was gyrating his hips.

"Anything you want," he said in a jokingly lusty voice.

Fred and Parker fell off their seats, laughing, as he jumped up next to Brooke and kept swinging his shirt around. They laughed even harder when their friend got up to dance with George. They all knew who exactly looked foolish at that moment, and it made all of them gasp for breath as both of the dancers fell onto the seats in a jumble.

"This is the most brilliant way to end the year ever," Brooke managed to say between breaths.

"Bloody brilliant," Fred agreed.

Some hours later the train pulled into Platform 9 3/4. Fred and Parker were rudely woken up by Drake and Atlade, who found it necessary to sit on them and drip cold water on their faces. Once awake, they all gathered whatever had managed to leak out of their trunks and dragged them off of the train. Parents were everywhere trying to find their children, and the group found a spot to avoid being seen so they could say their goodbyes.

"I'm going to miss you guys until September!" Parker cried as all of the girls got into a group hug.

"Who says we can't see each other till then? We have all summer!"

"Yeah, no one said we have to be home bound!"

There was more squealing and some tears as the girls broke apart. The boys stood off to the side, talking and clapping each other on the shoulders. Atlade flung herself at Drake, and their summer goodbye was so personal, the rest turned away in embarrassment. Lee was dragged off his parents, as was Drake and Atlade a few seconds later. Jude was talking to Fred and Parker as he watched for his and Brooke's mum, when all of a sudden, Brooke wrapped her arms around George's neck and kissed him deeply.

"I didn't know Laddie fancied George," Fred whispered is Parker's ear.

"Me, either. Guess we know now, eh? So how're we getting to your house?"

"Muggle taxis, most likely. The Ministry isn't about to let Dad use their cars, and the Leaky Cauldron is a bit of a walk with our trunks, so Floo Powder is out."

"What about Apparition?"

"Nah, Ginny and Ron are too young, and Mum likes for us to go home together. Ah, there she is. Bet Ginny told her we're off snogging or doing something not-so-nice."

"George and Brooke certainly are," Parker told him and pointed at where his twin was still snogging their friend.

"Oi! George! Put your tongue back in your mouth. Mum is coming over here!"

George and Brooke jumped apart as though they'd been burned. It was too late, however, as Mrs. Weasley seen them kissing. "GEORGE!"

"Hullo, Mum."

"What do you think you're doing?! Ginny, Ron and I have been looking everywhere for you, and here I find you--"

"Smashing good to see you, Mum, it's been, what? A few weeks?"

"Oh, Fred, there you are. Why do you let your brother just kiss anywhere he wants?"

"I'm his twin, Mum, not his babysitter."

Mrs. Weasley grumbled something under her breath, the said, "Alright you lot. We need to meet the others and get going. Your father won't keep the cars waiting forever."

George gave Brooke a hurried kiss goodbye as Fred said, "Mum? I'd like you to meet Parker Levesque, my girlfriend."

"I'm sorry, dear, I'm delighted to meet you. I'll have to give you better welcome once we get to the Burrow, we're on a tight schedule. FRED, GEORGE, GET MOVING!" she bellowed as the twins stood talking to Brooke.

Parker was laughing as the twins meekly walked over and joined their mother, who had taken over the trolley with their trunks on it. They met up with Ron and Ginny near the barrier and walked through to the Muggle side. Mr. Weasley motioned for them to follow him to the waiting taxis. The drivers shoved the five trunks into two cars, and the Weasleys and Parker split up. They took off with the twins and Parker in one car, and Ron, Ginny and their parents in the other.

An hour later they pulled up in front of the Burrow and began the task of unloading and hauling the trunks inside. Ginny took over for Parker, helping her with her trunk and showing the tired girl where her bedroom was. The girls dropped their school gear with a grateful sigh.

Ginny showed Parker the camp cot she was going to use and where to put her trunk, then unpacked her wand and new diary and threw them on her desk. "So Parker... What on earth so you see in my brother?"

"Pardon?"

"What do you see in Fred? I mean, I'm not _supposed_ to speak for him, he's my brother, and I love him and all, but..."

Parker laughed. "Fred's sweet, he's funny and he's a really good kisser."

"That's more than I needed to know," Ginny told her.

"You mean you don't want to know about the special spot on his--"

"NO OH PLEASE NO!" Ginny dropped on the bed and shoved her head under her pillows.

It took Parker a minute to realize the younger girl was laughing hysterically. "You're horrible," she said.

Ginny sat up and managed to stop laughing long enough to say, "I'm not horrible, Parker... Just grossed out and amused."

"So anyway, Ginny, what's it like having all those brothers?"

"Tiring, but you learn their tricks and how to outwit them after a while. Fred and George, for example, leave me alone for fear that I'll hex them. Bill, Charlie and Percy are protective, but they don't much bother me since they're so much older, but Ron tends to cling since he's just a year older. What about you?"

"I have an older sister and a younger brother. They're ok, but my sister is a bit high-strung and can be snooty some times. My brother, though, he can be clingy and a little whiney, but he's sweet."

"So how old are they?" Ginny asked, but was interrupted by Fred walking in. "I know you have the ability to knock."

"I do? _Really_? If I did, I lost it back at Hogwarts."

"Fred..." Parker warned.

"Come on, love, I'll show you the house," Fred said, grabbing Parker's hand.

"Hey, Mum told me to bring her up here while the rest of you lot are getting settled."

"Yeah, and George and I _are_ settled. It's called making your trunk explode, Gin."

"Fred, if your mum wants me up here..."

"Nah, this'll give her a better chance to meet you, and you'll get to see the place."

"Fred," Ginny whispered quietly, "there isn't much to see, so stop making it seem like we have untold riches."

"Relax, Gin. C'mon, Park." Fred tugged her arm gently and lead her down the stairs to the kitchen. "Obviously this is the kitchen and eating spot. Through here is the living room, and through that door behind us, as you saw, are the stairs that lead to our bedrooms. The door to the garden is here," he pulled her along outside, "and here's the garden. The orchard is over that way; we play Quidditch there. There's the broomshed... I'm sorry there isn't more to the house and yard... We don't have a lot of money, see..."

"Fred, it doesn't matter if you have a lot of money, or if you have the newest things." Parker squeezed his hand. "All that matters is that you're okay, you have a roof over your head and food in your belly. If you're happy here, I'm happy."

"You mean you don't mind living in squalor for a few weeks?"

"You don't live in squalor, love. I like your house; I think it's charming. Your family barely knows me, and they've welcomed me with open arms. A loving family makes a home, not money or material possessions."

Fred pulled Parker close. "You're the best, did you know that?"

"I know."

"And your speech sounded like one of those Muggle greeting cards."

"Fred!" She playfully pushed him away and took a few steps back. She grinned, then started jogging away. It took Fred a minute to realize what was happening, but he finally got it and chased after her.

It was a sunny late afternoon, which meant that it was easy for Fred to find Parker's red-blonde hair among the trees in the orchard. They took turns hiding and chasing each other until Parker caught Fred unawares and leapt at him from the side, knocking them both over onto a patch of soft grass. Fred somehow ended up on top of her, but they were laughing and didn't much care at that moment. The laughing stopped and he rolled off to the side, cupping her face in one hand.

Parker put one of her hands on the back of Fred's neck and brought his face to hers. Her fingers entwined in his hair as his own fingers did the same in hers. His other hand was supporting her as hers was wrapped around his back. The kiss deepened, and Parker moved so she was laying across Fred's chest and her hand went from his back to his rather sensitive ribs.

"Love," he whispered before he kissed her again. He then moved his lips from hers to her neck.

"Fred..." Parker said softly. "This is the stopping point."

The teen nodded and laid back, Parker still on his chest. "I wasn't going any further, Parker. I know the limit you set."

"I'm sorry."

"Park, remember what we said? About time? I stand by that. I'll wait forever for you."

"I don't deserve you, Fred." She slipped off of his chest to lay next to him in the grass. Her hand found his and they clasped them in the space between their bodies. "Oh, look, that cloud looks like a rabbit."

"I think this one over here looks like a hippogriff," Fred answered, joining in the game. He eventually sat up and got Parker to do the same and lean against him. The sky began to darken, and he was certain he heard voices nearby. "Bollocks. They must be looking for us."

"It _is_ dangerous to be out after dark, given what's happened recently," she answered, her voice taking on a sad tone.

Fred helped her to her feet, and asked quietly, "So you believe Dumbledore about what happened?"

"Of course I do; Cedric didn't drop dead of his own accord. Why? You don't believe him?"

"I trust Dumbledore to tell us the truth; if he says You-Know-Who has come back, he's come back. I'm just worried about everyone and who's going to make it out alive this time around."

"FREDERICK GIDEON WEASLEY WHAT ARE YOU THINKING?!" Mrs. Weasley bellowed. "NIGHT HAS FALLEN AND YOU HAVE YOUR GIRLFRIEND _OUTSIDE_?! HAVE YOU NO SENSE?! GET IN THE HOUSE THIS INSTANT!" The livid woman stomped across the orchard and made a pointing gesture toward the house. Fred and Parker took off at a run, hoping to get to the house and hide well enough to avoid the proper scolding they deserved.

Ginny looked up in surprise as Parker hurried into the bedroom looking quite harried. She watched the older girl open her trunk and pull out a book, turning the pages as fast as she could and cursing vividly as she shut the book. Parker looked at Ginny for a moment, then said, "I am so stupid."

"Why?"

"I know how I can hide. Don't tell your mum you saw me, and don't tell anyone else. Please, Ginny."

"All I know is Mum is in a right state that you guys were out till dark," Ginny replied with a shrug. "I can't tell what I don't know."

"Thank you so much." Parker opened the window. "Do you leave this open usually?"

"No, why?"

"It'll have to be shut, then." She took a deep breath and touched her wand to her forehead.

Ginny sat up in surprise as Parker touched her wand to her forehead and her form suddenly shrink. Looking over the foot of her bed, she saw a red tail hawk sitting on the floor where her brothers' girlfriend had been seconds before. The hawk/Parker looked at the human girl and screeched quietly, then with a rush of wings, flew out the window. Ginny rushed to close it as her mother walked into the room.

"Where is Parker?"

"I haven't seen her, Mum."

"Ginny..." Mrs. Weasley said warningly.

"Really, Mum, I haven't seen her since before Fred took her to show her the house."

"If you see her, tell her she and I need to talk."

"I will, Mum. Did you talk to Fred yet?" Ginny asked innocently.

"Oh, I caught him trying to hide in the laundry room behind a rack of towels. He should have known better, and I made sure that he does now." Mrs. Weasley kissed her daughter on the forehead and walked out.

Fred burst in a moment later. "Where's Parker?"

"Knock, Fred! I swear..."

"Where is she? Mum said she can't find her anywhere. Neither can George and I, and we know every nook and cranny of this house. You _have_ to know where she is, Gin."

"I do and I don't. She made me promise."

"Ginny, _please_."

"Fred, are you _begging_?"

"Ginny, if something happens to her, I don't know what I'll do."

She thought for a moment and thought she saw panic in Fred's eyes. "Give me a minute." She crossed to the window and opened it, and Fred heard her say, "He's panicking that he can't find you, you know. I think you might want to come in and soothe his fears, else neither of us is sleeping tonight."

"Are you losing your mind?" he asked, and immediately swallowed his next sentence as a hawk flew into the room and landed on the bed.

"Making new friends, Gin? This one looks a bit dangerous."

The hawk suddenly began to distort until a human girl sat there. "Dangerous, am I? I look like a pussy cat next your Mum."

"PARKER!" Fred hugged her. "You never, I mean I didn't, you can turn into a bird?"

"Yes, love. And I'll explain later. I think I want to lie down, and if you see your Mum, please tell her I'll talk to her in the morning." She kissed him and got off of the bed.

Fred left and the girls changed into their nightclothes, extinguishing the lights and crawling under their covers. Ginny and Parker chatted until they could no longer keep their eyes open, and were dead asleep when Mrs. Weasley checked on them. The older woman sighed, knowing that her son had found someone a lot like him, which meant that over the next few weeks she had another magical teenager to keep an eye out for.

**Another day, another chapter. I know I don't have many reviews, but that's ok. I like writing this. I don't know if I'll have another up before the holidays, but I sure will try.**

**Tootles!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I asked Santa to give me the rights to HP, but he called me naughty and greedy and threw coal at me.**

**Once again, warning for language...**

Early dawn sunlight peeked through the curtains to wake up the young woman curled up on a camp cot. Her weary eyes blinked slowly, then shut again as she yawned and sat up. Parker looked over at the bed and saw that Ginny was still asleep, so she quietly found her dressing gown and slippers and found her way downstairs. Rather than find the kitchen empty like she had expected to, she saw Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, and one of the boys, whose name she didn't know, at the table drinking tea.

"Good morning, dear," Mrs. Weasley said. "Would you like a cup of tea?"

"Yes, please." The older woman stood and walked to the stove.

"Go ahead, young lady, sit down, we don't bite," Mr. Weasley said with a smile. "We barely got to meet yesterday."

"I'm Parker Levesque."

"Arthur Weasley. You're dating... Which twin?"

"She's dating Fred, Arthur. Here you go, Parker. Sugar and cream are in the containers in front of you" Mrs. Weasley said as she sat down. "Arthur, isn't it time you went to work?"

"Blimey, it is! Sorry I can't chat more, Parker; The Ministry is watching those of us who associate with Dumbledore, and Fudge is finding ways to keep me busier than normal."

"All right, Arthur, go on before they decide that you're not necessary to the Ministry." Mrs. Weasley kissed Arthur goodbye and whispered something to him, then kissed her sons' cheek before closing the door. There was an extremely uncomfortable silence as she sat back down and sighed.

"Um... Mrs. Weasley..."

"Parker, all I would like to know is _why_ you felt the need to hide from me last night; I wasn't going to yell at you, just remind you that we all need to be careful from now on. _Fred_ is the one I had every intention of yelling at... Sometimes I wonder what is wrong with his and George's heads."

"I... I think I hid from you mostly because I was afraid of you yelling at us. See, my mum is a bear whenever she gets mad, and it's safer to hide from her. I suppose I didn't make things any better by hiding, and I know it was a poor impression for you."

"You are partially right in that respect, but understand, Arthur and I are responsible for you while you are here. It wasn't the greatest feeling in the world to realize you were hiding from us and that we couldn't find you. Can you imagine what your parents would have felt if we sent them an owl saying we lost you?"

"I am very, very sorry, Mrs. Weasley."

"It's alright, dear, no real harm done. You're safe and in one piece, that's all that matters." She patted Parker's hand. "Now I am quite curious... How _did_ you manage to hide? I found Fred in the laundry room."

"Oh. I, uh, well, I'm an Animagus. I turn into a hawk."

"Are you really? Well, that explains it. All I'll ask is that you don't use that to hide from us again."

"I won't, Mrs. Weasley."

"Good girl. Would you like to help me with breakfast? This lot will be down shortly, and they're going to want to be fed." At Parker's nod, they got up and went over to the stove to start cooking.

A short while later, Fred, George and Ginny came down to the kitchen looking thoroughly rumpled and like they didn't want to be awake yet. Fred and George both grabbed the coffee pot at the same time and held a silent battle over it until Ginny took it, poured her own cup and put it out of their reach. Her glare made them think again and they both decided on tea instead. Parker and Molly exchanged an amused look and began putting the food on the table.

"Boys, where is Ron?"

"How should we know, Mum?" Fred yawned.

"Yeah, we aren't his babysitters," George agreed.

"That's enough, you two. All I did was ask." Molly put her bowl down and hollered up the stairs, "RON, YOU'D BETTER GET DOWN HERE AND EAT BEFORE IT GETS COLD!" She motioned to Parker that the food was all set and that she could eat.

"How'd you sleep?" Parker asked Fred.

"Eh, not too bad. It was sleep."

"You're grouchy."

"I know."

Parker and Ginny caught each other's eyes, shook their heads and continued to eat their food. Once done, everyone helped with the dishes and went off to get dressed, leaving the dirty laundry out for Molly to wash. Ginny insisted on hanging out with Fred and Parker, as she said she wanted to get to know her roommate and that Fred was hogging her. Parker insisted that they share, and they all had a good time laughing.

**That night**

Fred, George and Parker were sitting in the twins' room, talking about some new things they were going to try and do the next term, when they heard loud voices coming from the kitchen. George stuck his head out the open bedroom window to try and hear what was being said, as that was where the sound was clearest, but he couldn't really make anything out. Parker opened the door a crack and all they heard was, "I HAVE EVERY REASON TO TRUST DUMBLEDORE, YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO DOUBT ME--" before she hastily shut it.

"_Dad's_ yelling?" Fred asked, astonished. "At who?"

"I HAVE EVERY RIGHT, YOUR LUDICROUS MUGGLE FASCINATION HAS PUT A STAIN ON OUR NAME--"

"That sounds like Percy," George said.

"It _is_ Percy."

"Percy's the bloke with the curly hair and glasses, works at the Ministry, right?" Parker asked.

"Yeah, why?" the twins chorused.

"Sounds like a real prat."

"Fred, brother, she's made for you."

"Dad and Percy are having a big row downstairs," Ginny said as she walked into the room.

"Really? We haven't heard."

"Don't be a jerk, Fred."

"We don't need another fight happening right now," Parker said as Fred opened his mouth to argue with his sister. "Wish we could hear what they were saying."

"See, Fred and I have been working on that since a few months ago," George told the girls. He rummaged through the pile of his things in his trunk and pulled out a wad of flesh-colored gel. He began pulling strings from the wad and handed them out. "We've decided to call them 'Extendable Ears'. They pick up sound and amplify it. Put it in your ear, and wait."

"Only thing is," Ginny pointed out, "is that if an Imperturbable Charm is placed on the door to the room the person is in, the Ears are a no-go. And, as far as I know, they haven't put one up."

"Obviously," George responded. "Wait... They might have now; it's gone real quiet."

"It's either that or Dad killed the great git," Fred added. There was a sudden slam and a wail. "Mum." He ran out of the door with the rest of them on his heels, and Ron a few steps behind them from his room upstairs.

They crashed into the kitchen to find Arthur comforting a sobbing Molly. He looked at his sons and daughter with sad eyes and continued to hold his wife. "Your older brother," he started, "has decided that we're no longer worth his time and no longer wants to live here."

The faces of the Weasley children all flushed with anger, making Parker take a step back in fear. "I always knew something went wrong with him somewhere," Ron muttered.

"I heard that, Ronald," Molly said, wiping her face. "Despite what has happened here tonight, I do _not_ want to hear _any_ of you speaking against him. He is still your brother. You'd do right to remember that." More tears appeared.

"Any prat that yells at our parents the way he did and breaks his mother's heart is not _my_ brother," Fred told her. "I'm not associated with anyone like that."

"Fred..." Arthur warned. He looked and saw Parker backed against the wall, looking almost terrified of his children. "Parker, I am so sorry this happened when you were here."

"Mister Weasley, it would have happened regardless of whether or not I was here. You don't have to apologize," Parker answered him. She shyly stepped forward and lightly touched Fred's hand. He looked at her in surprise, then let her take his hand in hers.

"Boys, Ginny, it's going to be a hard summer on all of us, but I think the next few weeks will be the worst. P... Percy just made things even worse by running out and denying us, but we have to stick together and get through it, alright?" Molly asked, her voice shaking.

"Yes, Mum," they all chorused.

"I want to go lay down, I think," she said. "Arthur, can you help me to bed?"

"Of course, dear. Night, kids."

"Night Mum, night Dad."

As the adults went upstairs, the Weasley children and Parker sat around the table, Fred and Parker still holding hands. "I can't... I can't believe Percy did this to Mum and Dad," Ron said to them.

"We can," the twins chorused.

"We've known him longer, remember?" George asked.

"And I've always had the suspicion he'd do something like this," Fred added. "He was always about moving up in the Ministry, he never approved of Dad's job or interests, said it'd be hard for him to get a job because of it. 'Course, I thought it'd Mum and Dad chucking him out, not him leaving of his own will."

"I just think it's horrible that left Mum crying the way he did," Ginny said to them, "and for what he said to Dad. If I was of age and he was here..."

"Ginny, you aren't and he's not. Just get over it," Ron muttered.

"Get over it? Ron, did you not notice Mum crying? Or that Dad was about to start? He hurt them with what he said, I don't think they'll _ever_ get over it," Fred told his youngest brother. "I'm just going to act like this never happened, and Percy is only a distant relative, not one of my brothers." He stood up, letting go of Parker's hand. "I'm going upstairs. If anyone wants to talk or whatever, come up, but I don't think I'll be in the talking mood. Coming George?"

"Coming, Fred." The twins walked upstairs.

"I think," Parker said tiredly, "that tonight is one of those nights I'm going to keep my mouth shut and go to bed early. Maybe tomorrow something good will happen."

**The next week**

Parker's prediction came true, in part; the week following Percy's departure was calm when Molly wasn't crying, and George got a surprise in Brooke showing up nearly every day to visit. Her bright personality, combined with Parker and the twin's mangled senses of humor, made for laughter and relaxed afternoons. The twins managed to sneak their girlfriends into the village for a double date one afternoon, much to the delight of the girls.

They got back from the local diner and walked through the orchard. Ginny joined them a short while later, along with Ron, who was excited that at some point the next day, Hermione Granger was going to arrive. The twins teased him mercilessly about fancying Hermione, which made Ron turn red and refuse to talk to either of them. They all went back to the house near dusk to find a surprise visitor sitting at the table, watching Molly fix dinner.

"Professor Dumbledore? What're you doing here?" Ron asked.

"Oh, Ron, do _try_ to use the manners I taught you," Molly said tiredly.

"The best of us do forget our manners at times, Molly, so I think I can overlook young Ronald's lapse at the moment," Professor Dumbledore said kindly.

"Regardless, Albus, he knows better. Children, come eat while it's hot."

"What about you guys?" George asked.

"We'll eat later."

"And you will have less of a chance to interrupt me and be rude," Dumbledore told them as plates were placed in front of them. He waited patiently for them to begin eating before he spoke. "As you all heard at the end of term feast, Lord Voldemort has come back. This poses a problem, as the Ministry refuses to believe that he has, indeed, returned, and they aren't defending me to the _Prophet_. In that respect, anyone known to be associated with myself is in danger of possibly losing their credibility, and possibly their jobs if they don't cooperate. Arthur is in little danger of that," he told the worried Weasleys, "so you needn't worry. We adults have decided unanimously that, for everyone's safety, you will all be moving to another location for the remainder of the summer." Noise filled the small kitchen as utensils were dropped on plates and surprised voices made themselves heard.

"That's rubbish--"

"Why didn't we just--"

"That's not fair, we should have been warned--"

"What if--"

"What about Hermione?"

"And Brooke?"

"What about Parker? I'm not leaving her behind."

"All of you, BE QUIET!" Molly commanded. "Let Professor Dumbledore finish what he was saying. I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize, Molly. You can't say it wasn't expected. To answer you, Ron, Miss Granger is meeting us here to join us at our final destination. As for Miss Levesque, she will return to her family tomorrow afternoon."

"No!" Fred yelled, standing. "If You-Know-Who is back, I'm not leaving Parker unprotected! If where we're going is so safe, she's coming, too!"

"I understand your distress, young Fred, but what you are asking is not possible. I wish we could bring them, but we cannot. It is not lack of space, I assure you."

"But _why_? We're bringing Harry and Hermione!"

"You will understand soon enough, I haven't the time to explain right now. On that note, I wanted to quickly discuss something with you. I know you young lovers will want to keep in correspondence with each other. Where we will be going, we do not want owls continuously coming and going, so I am recommending that you exchange one letter a week. If there is an emergency, young ladies, then feel free to send an owl as quickly as the bird can fly. Otherwise, it's one letter a week." Dumbledore stood. "I am sorry to be so abrupt, but I must be on my way. Good evening, Molly." He walked out of the door and shut it behind him.

"Before I hear one word out of you lot, Professor Dumbledore is putting a lot on the line on our behalf. I know you twins have a great deal of problems with our newest arrangement, but keep in mind that what is happening is for the safety of the family."

"Hermione isn't family, Mum, but she gets to go."

"Professor Dumbledore thinks otherwise. It isn't for you to question, anyway, Fred. Let it drop. You have most of tomorrow for goodbyes, so just do what you can with the time," Molly told them and motioned for them to finish their food. No one was hungry anymore, and she quickly took their dishes to the sink and set them to washing.

The teens all got up and sat around the living room, quiet as dust. Ginny was curled up in an armchair, Ron was sitting on the matching footrest. Brooke was perched on the edge of the sofa with George leaning between her knees, her arms slung loosely around his neck. Fred sat against the other end of the sofa, his arms around the unhappy Parker that sat between his legs with her back against his chest.

"This is rubbish," she said angrily, wiping a tear from her cheek.

"I know," Fred and George chorused.

"It sucks, Park, we know, but we have to make the best of it. Think of all the love letters we'll have," Brooke said with a smile.

**The next afternoon**

None of them could remember ever having felt the way they did for the entire day before the "move." Ron waited anxiously for Hermione's arrival around noontime, while the couples spent what time they could just being with each other. They knew that once Hermione arrived, it wouldn't be long before Parker had to say goodbye to the Weasleys, an activity she was dreading. Ginny had helped her pack the night before, and she brought her trunk down that morning.

All too soon there was a rush of green flames in the fireplace. Hermione Granger stepped out, her spare hand on her trunk; the other was holding her ugly ginger cat, Crookshanks. The youngest Weasley greeted her enthusiastically, as did Molly and Ginny. Her things were simply placed in the living room to make it easier for transport later on. As the clock ticked closer and closer to three, Fred held Parker closer and tighter, almost like he had no intention of letting her go. Three o'clock chimed and there was a swift knock on the door. George got himself up and answered it to find not Dumbledore, but Remus Lupin standing there.

"Professor Lupin? What're you doing here?"

"I am here to escort Parker back home."

"What happened to Dumbledore?"

"Busy. Where is Parker? Is she ready to go?"

Fred and Parker stood reluctantly. "I'm right here," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "My things are all set."

"Well, we need to be off. Dumbledore has it set that we'll arrive at King's Cross at a certain time so we can meet up with your parents."

She turned to Brooke and hugged her fiercely. "I'll see you soon; you have to visit me and Drake... And Atlade!" She gave Ginny a quick hug, then thanked Molly for letting her stay. She hugged George, then laughed at whatever absurd thing he murmured just to make her do so. Then... Fred.

Parker wrapped her arms around his neck and held onto him as tight as she could. His arms were around her waist, pulling her even closer. She felt tears overflow from her eyes to soak his shirt. "Gods, Fred, I am going to miss you so much."

"I'm going to miss you, too, love," he whispered. "I hate that we have to be apart so long."

"Just promise you'll write."

"I will, love. I promise."

"Parker, we have to go," Lupin said in an almost impatient voice. He took her trunk out to the yard and waited by a large tree for her. She and Fred walked out, and he let her go with a kiss.

About five feet from Lupin, Parker turned back and threw herself into Fred's arms. He hugged her close again and whispered, "Parker, I love you."

"I love you, too, Fred." She pulled back and kissed him. "I have to go."

"I know." He kissed her.

"Parker!"

"Bye Fred!" Parker called as she ran. "I love you!"

"Love you too!"

"Dumbledore told me you can Apparate, correct?" Lupin asked her.

"I just passed my test in May."

"Good. One hand on your trunk, and..."

Just before Parker spun on the spot, she looked at Fred and blew him a kiss. The last she saw, Fred grabbed the at the air and put his hand to his cheek, just as though he had caught her kiss. He smiled.

**Another chapter down. The next one will be more interesting, as it will be letters that they've written to each other over the rest of the summer.**

**Please read and review!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I swear, I wish I was J.K. Rowling, I really do...**

**Note: This chapter is going to be some of the letters Fred and Parker exchange over the summer. Fred's letters will be in regular font. Parker's will be in italics.**

**Oh, warning on some language and some insinuations.**

_Dear Fred,_

_You know as well as I that it has been a week since Dumbledore made us part. I haven't gotten anything from you, so I'm guessing you were either waiting, or you lack the use of an owl. Anyway, I felt it safe to write you now, since the appropriate amount of time has passed. I hope you're all safe where you are._

_My trip home was uneventful; once we got to the Leaky Cauldron, it was a quick cab ride to King's Cross. Dad, Summer and Rupert picked me up there and drove us back home to our place in Liverpool. When I got in the house, however, I felt that something was quite wrong... _

_Sometime in the last few weeks, Dad threw Mum out. Seems she got mad at him for telling me I could see you even though she said no. Summer said that during the argument, Mum revealed that she paid Tory off to attack me two years ago; her reasoning was something about hoping I'd be too broken to want to go back to Hogwarts, so I'd stay home and not be a "freak" anymore. I guess she was never really excited about me being what I am, she just acted like it to appease Dad. He wasn't too happy about that, so he chucked her out with not a second thought. Dad told me she screamed at him that he could have us all he wants before she left for good._

_Besides that, everything here has been alright. I've seen both Drake and Atlade, seeing as he lives nearby and she's over there a lot. Both of them are doing well, and they wanted me to tell you hi and they miss you. _

_Rupert says he really wants to meet you, and hopes he'll see you in the fall. Summer wants to know if you have any "hot" older brothers._

_I could go on about nothing for pages and pages, but I won't. I miss you loads and I hope the days go by quickly until we see each other again. I love you._

_Parker_

Love,

We're all doing fine where we are. I wish I could tell you about this place, but we've been told no, and I have to be careful what I write to you. Mum and Dad send some love, Ginny sends some hugs, and George, well, I won't tell you what George wanted me to send.

I couldn't believe what you said about your mum... She really paid off a guy to attack to you to keep you from Hogwarts? What kind of mum does that to her child? I don't want to make you mad or really upset by saying so, but she doesn't seem like she cared too much. I think your dad was smart to chuck her out. It didn't seem safe for you and the others.

Speaking of mums, ours found the stash of Extendable Ears and promptly threw them out. Then she screamed at us again. George and I know she wants us to be more than immature teens with plans to go into the pranking business, which she thinks the Ministry is a better way to go. Given the way things are, we both figure the Ministry wouldn't the best route even if we _were_ interested. What Mum doesn't know is, we managed to hide a few of the Ears, so that means we're still in business, so to speak. We've also started experimenting with some other things that we might sell once term starts, so I'll keep you up on that.

You said Rupert hopes to see me in the fall? What's that about, Park? I thought you said your brother was a lot younger than you, unless you mean that your dad is going to bring him with you in September. But if he's a lot younger, than how old is Summer? Oh, tell her that Bill and Charlie are available, but Charlie's in Romania doing his thing with dragons.

I guess that's all for now. I love you and miss you like mad, love.

Fred

_Fred,_

_I'm still doing fine here. Dad sends his regards and said he wishes he could have met you; he said you sound interesting and wants to "explore your mind." He's weird like that sometimes. Summer and Rupert say hi, too._

_Your mum threw out the Ears?! Outrageous! They were one of the coolest things I've seen in a while... and I've seen a few things. You mentioned to me before I left about Puking Pastilles or something like that, and you're developing Fainting Fancies and Nosebleed Nougats? Weird names, Fred, for something you wouldn't tell me the purpose of. Not to offend your mum, but she needs to realize that you guys don't have career paths that lead to the Ministry, that you have a great ability to make lives for yourselves._

_To answer your question, Summer's birthday is the end of August, and she'll be an old lady of twenty. Rupert, on the other hand, just turned eleven in February, and he's hoping with everything he has that he'll get a Hogwarts letter soon. He knows the little I've been able to tell him, and he thinks that maybe two wizards will come from a Muggle family. Who knows? All I can say is he thinks the whole thing is the coolest._

_Brooke was here the other day with Jude. Fred, that girl misses George like you wouldn't believe. Let him know he has to watch himself on September first, because I think she's going to try and get him alone and... pretty much molest the living hell out of him. The things she described were pretty disturbing. Jude wants to see guys soon so he can help you wreak whatever havoc he's good at. Laddie and Drake wanted me to tell you guys they say hi, they're happy and they hope you both are happy to some extent._

_Can you believe we're seventh years and will be taking our N.E.W.T.s in the spring? Our Hogwarts days are almost over! I remember what you and George said about maybe not coming back, but I think your minds will change and I'll see you on the train._

_All my love, _

_Parker_

Park,

You wouldn't believe some of the things that have happened here. You wouldn't believe the people who have been here, either. We're sworn to secrecy, as you well know, so I can't say who we've seen. It's been overall boring; there's naught much to do here but clean or read, as Mum's been keeping an eye on us.

George said to pass on to Brooke that he's all for the molesting, he can't wait to see her. I can't wait to see you, either, but I think we'll be able to keep the public snogging and groping to a minimum. Also, let Laddie and Drake know we are _not_ having an orgy on the train, so they can forget that idea and stick it, well, you can guess where. Harry just got here a few days ago, Dumbledore had people go and get him from the Muggles he lives with so he could be safe. From what I heard from Ron and Hermione, Harry was attacked by dementors and was almost expelled from Hogwarts for using a spell that drove them off in front of his idiot cousin. Stupid git has five-year-old temper tantrums at least once every hour, he yells loud enough I'm sure you can hear him all the way out there. Ginny, George and I still think it isn't fair that Ron gets to have his best mates here and we have to do without.

As an afterthought, Percy's still being a great prat and refuses to talk to any of us. Mum's crying when she thinks no one's looking, and generally breaks whatever she's holding when one of us mentions him. Oh yeah, we got our Apparition licenses last week; Mum doesn't like it one bit.

Just a few more weeks, love, and we'll be together again.

Fred

_Fred,_

_Time can't go fast enough with September first just a week away. I got my book list last week, and the book for Defense is a joke; it's all theory and no spells. Looks like Dumbledore got a real winner to take over for Moody._

_Good news, love: Rupert got his letter last week right after I wrote you. He was so excited I thought he was going to wet his trousers. Dad said he couldn't be prouder to have two magical children in the family. Summer felt put out, so Dad said there's nothing wrong with producing good, healthy, normal children, either. She just got some certificate at the school she's going to and got a job at some big company here in the city, so her pouting was a bit unnecessary. And you should have both Charlie and Bill write to her; she said she wants a wizard boyfriend, and your brothers are the only ones she knows about._

_Brooke sends hugs and gropes, Atlade sends kicks in the jewels to both of you, Drake feels bad and wishes he could stop them, Jude can't wait to see you guys and Lee, and I send hugs to your family and a big kiss to you, love._

_Parker_

**A corny way to end it, I know, but this took me forever to write and I figured instead of dragging it out, I'd end it. I'm sorry it's short. I'll update soon!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: What sane person would be writing for free instead of publishing books?**

**Here's the usual "just in case" language warning... There may be some innuendo later on, too.**

"Parker, no matter how jittery you get, it will _not_ make me het you to King's Cross any faster. Notice that even though it's his first year going to Hogwarts, Rupert is sitting still."

"Rupert has no nerves," Parker responded.

"I do too!" the youngster exclaimed from the backseat.

"You don't look excited or nervous, Rue."

"I hide it well."

"Gets that from me, 'e does," their father said with a laugh. "Too bad Summer had to work else I think she'd be going too."

"Nah, Dad, she said that if Fred's older brothers weren't going to be there, she was going to work."

"Your sister is a piece of work." He pulled into the parking lot of the train station several minutes later, and had to bawl Parker out for getting out of the car before it had stopped. He put the two heavy trunks on a trolley and called to his daughter, "Oi! Park, you forgot your bird!"

"I sent him to Fred a few days ago; I'm sure he'll remember to send him ahead," Parker answered. She lead the way to the barrier between tracks nine and ten and showed her younger brother how to get to nine and three-quarters. She smiled at the awe on his face as he saw the scarlet engine for the first time. Her attention wandered as she looked for a familiar head of red hair, and it took her brother a minute to get her to look at him.

"Parker! Parker! You need to show me where to go!" Rupert yelled over the noise.

"Right. Grab your trunk. Dad, we'll be right back." She took him onto the train and shoved his trunk onto the rack in an empty compartment. "A few people will eventually ask to sit with you since this compartment is mostly empty. It's up to you who you sit with."

"Wait, can't I sit with you and Fred?"

"No. First, there won't be any room for you. Second, you wouldn't want to be in there with us anyway; those of us sitting together are all couples. Lastly, as much as I love you, you have to remember that I am _not_ your babysitter at school, you make your own friends and pretty much leave me be unless it's important. Rupert," she said when she saw his face fall, "I'm not bullying you. I am just trying to get you to remember that I am older and have my own life forming with people in my year. Plus, I have my N.E.W.T. tests this year, so I'm not going to be the most pleasant person to be around."

"Promise you'll make time for me, though?" Rupert asked quietly.

"I promise. Now let's go and say bye to Dad." Parker lead her brother out of the train to where she remembered her father to be. Instead of being alone, she saw that her father was talking to a somewhat tall, red-haired young man. "FRED!" she yelled. He heard her and turned just in time to catch her as she stumbled into him. "I missed you so much," she whispered, wrapping her arms around him.

"I missed you, too, love," he whispered back, holding her close. He let her go but kept her hand in his when they heard a not-so-discreet cough nearby.

"Dad, this is Fred Weasley, they guy I've been seeing and that you got tired of hearing about during the summer. Fred, this is my dad," Parker said, introducing them.

"I was just talking to Fred before you ran up and stole him," her father responded. "I approve, Park."

"Thanks," the teens said in unison.

"This little blond thing is Rupert. Rupert, Fred."

"PARKER!" Two girls and two boys were charging through the crowd towards them, knocking over first-years and startling owls. Atlade, Brooke, Jude and Drake converged on Parker and Fred and squashed them in a tight group hug. Mr. Levesque got shoved out of the way and nearly fell over onto a trolley piled with owl cages. They finally separated and George appeared only to have Brooke launch herself at him.

Parker and Rupert said goodbye to their father as they tried to ignore the very _thorough_ greeting Brooke and George were engrossed in. Fred took it upon himself to rip his twin away from his girl, much to the young man's displeasure. Before George had a chance to retaliate, the train whistle blew its final warning to stragglers on the platform. A final kiss on the cheek and Parker ran from where her father was onto the train before it left.

The door closed and the train began to move when Fred grabbed Parker in a close hug and pressed his lips to hers. She responded just as enthusiastically, entangling her fingers in his lengthening hair. He broke off the kiss and buried his face in her neck. "You have no idea how mad I went without you," he whispered.

"I think I might have a general idea," she said back.

"Oi! You're blocking traffic up there!" an angry voice yelled. "Make wit' the romance somewheres else!"

Parker noticed a line of students trying to get past them and into the next car. Sighing, she took Fred's hand and lead him to the compartment where she'd stowed her trunk. Coincidentally, his and George's trunks had been put in there, too. Once more they kissed, but were unceremoniously shoved over when George, Brooke, Drake and Atlade decided it was time to come in. "Enough of that out of you two," Brooke said as she sat.

"This coming from the girl who was just about ripping her boyfriend's pants off right on the platform," Parker retorted, sitting between Fred and Drake.

"That," the girl said back, "was different."

"Not really," Atlade told her. "Park and Fred were actually being a bit more reserved than you two, and they've been dating longer."

"Shush, the lot of you," Drake said with a yawn. "It is too cursed early in the year for you to be at each other's throats. Besides, you've been away from each other most of the summer, so one would think you'd be happy to see each other."

"We _are_," the girls chorused.

"You have a funny way of showing it."

"There's a method to our madness," Brooke told her friend.

"_Anyway_. Where's Jude?" Fred asked.

"Off with Lee; he said something about the summer homework and that he wanted to ask Lee about it."

"We didn't _have_ summer homework," Parker pointed out.

"I know."

"Hey, Park, why are you in here?" Fred suddenly asked.

"Excuse me?"

"Why are you in this compartment with us?"

Parker looked at him with a genuinely hurt expression. "I miss you all summer and this is what I've been waiting to hear, Fred?"

"Park, that's not- You took- That's not what- Please don't cry," he stammered.

"I'm not crying. And if you wanting me out of here isn't what you meant, then what _did_ you mean?"

Fred looked at her and said, "When we met, you said you were a Hufflepuff prefect. I thought prefects had duties on the train."

The hurt disappeared from Parker's quickly. "Oh. That. I was hoping to deter you guys from whatever you were doing, is all."

"You _lied_?"

"So? You guys do it all the time." She punched him in the arm. "That is for making me worry you were about to dump me."

"I've been on the receiving end of one of those, mate," Drake said, his voice full of sympathy. "I know how hard she hits."

"She shouldn't be hitting anyone," Atlade said, shaking her finger at her friend. "But I'm not her mother, so I'm not going to do anything about it." She stopped and sat back in her seat.

"Thanks, Laddie," Fred said, rubbing his arm. "You're not much help."

"She's _your_ girl. _You_ take care of her," George pointed out.

George's comment caused all three boys to engage in an impromptu wrestling match, one which gave Drake two blacks eyes and had the girls laughing. Drake took himself out once his face had gotten hit, which left the twins struggling for dominance on the floor. Fred finally came out victorious, and George got himself up to look in his trunk for the bruise ointment he always kept there. They passed it around and were back to normal when Atlade suddenly asked, "Parker, what's wrong?"

"Huh?" Parker was startled from her stare out the window. "Nothing's wrong."

"You've been quiet for a while. You barely laughed at the boys."

"I'm _fine_."

"You just as well admitted something's wrong," Brooke said sternly. "We aren't dumb."

Parker opened her mouth to voice another denial when Fred said, "Spit it out or we'll keep hounding you until you give up."

She looked out the window again and heaved a heavy sigh. Her eyes were on the floor as she said, "I saw Tory over the summer."

"You did _what_?!" the rest of the compartment chorused.

"I saw Tory."

"Wait, you willingly saw the guy who tried to rape you?" Drake asked angrily.

"I had to," Parker answered. "I wanted to find out why he did what he did for my mother. So I went to his house."

Fred, George, Brooke, Atlade and Drake all began yelling at her. She'd expected as much, just like she knew they wouldn't understand _why_ she'd done what she had. She listened to them call her ten different kinds of idiot, and stayed quiet when they asked angry questions that she had pretty much already answered.

"I'm disappointed in you," Fred told her quietly. "I thought you were working through whatever scars you had left from him."

"I was. I am."

"Than why would you even _consider_ going to see him?" Brooke asked.

"When I found out from Summer that Mum had paid Tory to do what he had done, I wanted to know _why_. I wanted to know exactly what she had said to him and why he thought it was a good idea."

"And?" Fred asked.

"It was the money, he said. I guess he thought I was a nice enough bird, thought about approaching me, but then Mum stepped forward with her money and her idea. Tory told me it hurt him to do what he did, but he thinks the prison time he did was fair enough punishment." She felt Fred start to tense in anger beside her. "Fred, everyone, will you please forgive me? I only did what I thought to be right, even if it was satisfying my curiosity. But it made a scenario make sense. I know I should have either had someone go with me, or at least know where I was, but I felt that if any of you knew, you'd try and stop me."

"Too right we would have," they all chorused.

"Can we let it drop, then? I told you guys what I was hiding from you, you've all yelled at me, I feel justly punished."

"We'll let it go for now," Brooke cautioned, "but we're all going to have this talk in greater detail later."

"I agree," the twins said in unison.

The mood was rather subdued from that point on, but they were determined to make things a bit happier. Atlade made Parker think they'd left poor Rupert behind, causing her to panic, but got her to understand that one of them had made sure the boy was on the train. The girls then teamed up on the twins, mentioning that their robes looked a bit too new, and demanded to know how they had managed to replace their old ones. Neither Fred nor George gave up the secret.

They got into Hogsmeade and made the trip to the castle via the horseless carriages. Once at Hogwarts, they went into the Great Hall and split up to go their respective tables. After several minutes, Professor McGonagall lead the always terrified first years up to the stool set on the floor below the teachers' dias. She called them up after the Sorting Hat sang, and Parker felt her heart freeze when she heard, "Levesque, Rupert!" called up. She watched her little red-haired brother as the Hat settled over his face, and grabbed Drake's hand in a fit of nerves.

After what seemed like an eternity, the Sorting Hat finally proclaimed, "RAVENCLAW!" Rupert took the Hat off, breathed a visible sigh of relief, and walked over to the proper table to sit with Brooke. Parker, too, sighed, and let go of her best friends' hand. Drake smiled at her understandingly and turned his attention back to the Sorting.

The feast was filled with the usual good food, and good humor at being back at school. Dumbledore stood and gave his usual speech about rules and new teachers, and was unceremoniously interrupted by the new Defense teacher, Professor Umbridge. She gave a rather boring speech that had Parker, and the twins, causing minor mayhem at their tables. The tiny woman hardly noticed the smattering of applause she received, and the lack of attention that was on her. Dumbledore finished his speech and sent the students off to bed.

Parker caught Fred's eye and met him in the entrance hall amidst the mayhem of everyone going to their common rooms. She pulled him into a corner behind the giant hourglasses that marked House points and pressed her eager lips to his. She kissed him with such ferocity that he had to pull back. "Parker, what--" He was cut off by her kissing him again.

He pulled back from her again. "I missed you, too, love, but take it easy. I _can_ break." Noticing where she had pulled him, he asked, "Aren't you... You know... Worried, at all? Being in the corner?"

Parker shook her head. "I got over my fear this summer."

"That quick?" Fred raised an eyebrow.

"Well, kind of. I'm a bit nervous, but I'm with you... So I feel safe."

Fred kissed her gently. "We have time to be all hot and heavy later, love. Right now I have the feeling we'll be caught any minute, which makes my blood go even more, but I'd rather not risk you getting in trouble. I will see you in the morning, you bet on that."

"But--"

Fred put his finger against her lips. "No arguments. Please? Go catch up with Drake and make sure the midgets get where they belong."

Parker smiled and kissed him sweetly. "If I must. Remember, I love you."

"I love you, too." He gave her a gentle shove into the hall and smiled as she joined the troop of badgers heading towards the kitchens. He thrust himself away from the wall and made his way to the tower so he, Lee and George could start on getting things ready for testing.

**Sorry this took so long to post. My birthday came and went, so that had a part. Otherwise, it was just writing when I didn't feel blocked or when I had the time. I'll try to move faster next time, but be warned that the next chapter might go faster that you expect!**


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